


Losing Iron

by TheDumbestAvenger



Series: Born of Iron [4]
Category: Captain America (Movies), Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Captain America: The Winter Soldier, F/M, Father-Son Relationship, Iron Man 3, Oop Kalen's getting in trouble again, Parent Tony Stark, Protective Natasha Romanov, Protective Tony Stark, Sam Wilson Is a Good Bro, Tony Stark Has A Heart, What else is new, Winter Soldier Bucky Barnes
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-13
Updated: 2020-08-03
Packaged: 2021-03-04 22:14:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 25,481
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25243726
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheDumbestAvenger/pseuds/TheDumbestAvenger
Summary: Nothing has been the same since New York. Within a matter of days, Kalen learned about the existence of aliens, fought alongside the Avengers, and had his identity revealed to the public. Now, seven months later, a new threat rears its head and neither Kalen nor Tony want to take it on. But since when did they have a say in the matter?Maybe a holiday with Uncle Steve could do the trick.
Relationships: Pepper Potts/Tony Stark, Steve Rogers & Natasha Romanov, Steve Rogers & Sam Wilson, Tony Stark & Original Character(s)
Series: Born of Iron [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1742518
Comments: 2
Kudos: 3





	1. Crisis to Crisis

** Seven Months Later - December 2012 **

Since New York, Kalen had grown used to seeing his face on TV. Whether it was coverage of a film premiere or charity gala he and Tony had been invited to, or a daytime TV chatshow with nothing better to talk about than other people’s business. One thing Kalen would never grow used to was when they questioned Tony’s parenting, when they compared his love and affection to Howard’s. Worst was when they debated what happened in New York.

Even though most of the Avengers, Nick Fury included, had given interviews and statements about what happened during the battle, people still managed to blame Tony for Kalen’s involvement. Still managed to insinuate that Tony was the reason his own son fought that day. 

Kalen was feeding Cole in the kitchen when one such talk show caught his attention. They were trying to spin the narrative to say that Tony hadn’t spoken about Kalen before because he hated his son and that he ordered him to fight in New York out of malice. Despite the mountain of evidence to the contrary, enough people blindly believed what they heard to have kept the debate alive even as Christmas closed in.

Kalen fell onto the sofa, clenching his jaw as he watched and wanting nothing more than to jump through the screen and yell at them about how wrong they were. Cole trotted over, sensing Kalen’s anger, and jumped up with his front paws on Kalen’s knees as he covered Kalen’s face with kisses. “Hey!” Kalen giggled, leaning to the side as he tried to watch the show.

_ “It’s the only explanation that makes sense,”  _ said one of the presenters,  _ “I know how it feels to be a parent and I simply would never allow my daughter anywhere near that battle.” _

_ “But Tony didn’t want-” _ A second presenter - the only one who appeared within reason - tried to defend, but was quickly shouted over by a third.

_ “If Tony loved his son, he’d never have made him a suit.” _

_ “He didn’t make the suit! He didn’t even know it existed until the wormhole opened!” _

_ “You expect me to believe that a child could make an Iron Man suit? When industry professionals like Justin Hammer couldn’t even get close to a functioning model-” _

“Mute.” Tony limped upstairs from the lab, nursing an ice pack against his shoulder. “You shouldn’t watch that stuff, they don’t know what they’re talking about.”

“But they’re making you out to be a bad guy!” Kalen threw his hands in the air and fell back against the sofa. “You’ve saved the world, like, three times and they can’t leave you alone for one day.”

“What they say about me doesn’t matter. The people closest to me know the truth, and that’s all that really matters.” Tony sat next to Kalen, snorting a laugh as Cole lay across both their feet. 

“I suppose that makes sense.”

“Of course it does, I said it.” Tony waggled his eyebrows, earning a laugh from Kalen. “I cleared up the workshop. Going to have to do some serious recalibration before we attempt a second suit up of the 42.”

“That’s an understatement. Maybe you should’ve listened to Jarvis’ safety briefing first-”

The TV turning to static cut Kalen off, loud enough to have made Cole jump up from where he lay. The screen changed to a symbol on a background of coloured stripes, two crossed swords surrounded by a circle of rings. 

Tony fixed on the screen, purposely keeping his face emotionless, though Kalen saw the way the corner of his lip curled. Whatever the broadcast was showed footage of a man stalking along a line of people on their knees.  _ “Some people call me a terrorist,” _ he said. A row of armed people raised their guns, Tony covered his hand over Kalen’s eyes but the gunshots still reached his ears. 

“Jarvis, can you turn it off?” Tony asked loudly, drowning out the broadcast with his voice. 

_ “I don’t seem to be able to, sir.” _

“Then try harder.” Tony’s voice was erratic as he tried to shield Kalen from the horrific scenes playing out on the screen. 

_ “The broadcast is being played on every screen across the country.” _

As soon as it started, the screen turned back to the chat show, the hosts sharing confused glances with each other as they processed what happened. 

Tony removed his hand, “you okay, buddy?”

“Yeah,” Kalen nodded, even though fear was creeping up his spine. “That was the Ten Rings symbol, right?”

Tony’s jaw clenched. “It was.” 

Kalen swallowed a lump in his throat, his voice shaking as he spoke. “Are the Avengers going to be called to deal with them?”

“No,” Tony answered quickly. “This is for the Government to deal with, not the team, not Iron Man.”

“Good,” Kalen breathed. 

Tony pulled his leg up onto the sofa, fully turning towards Kalen, his expression soft. “Does calling the Avengers in scare you?”

“Yeah,” Kalen whispered.

“Why?”

_ Because you won’t let me join you, I won’t be able to save you like last time.  _ The moment had never arisen to tell Tony about the Ancient One and everything that happened, so Kalen opted for the safer answer. “Because it’s dangerous and I don’t want any of you to get hurt. I know I haven’t known most of them for very long, but we feel like a family.”

Tony cocked a half-smile, “that’s one strange family, kid.” He brushed Kalen’s hair from his face, “It scares me too, and that’s okay. But if we are ever needed in the future, we’ll be okay. ‘Cause we’re a team, teams work together.”

Kalen narrowed his eyes. “Did you get that from Uncle Steve?”

“It’s a possibility,” Tony shrugged. “But he’s right, we have each other’s backs. Plus we’ll probably never be called again.” Tony didn’t believe that, but he’d shout it from the rooftops if it helped Kalen. In fact, he had an awful feeling that something bigger was already on its way, a threat that maybe they couldn’t face down. He pushed the thought from his mind the best way he knew how. “Want to help me figure out what’s wrong with the 42?”

“Actually, I think I’m going to read my book for a bit.” Kalen loved spending time in the workshop, especially with Tony, but recently all of Tony’s time was spent down there working on new suits. Plus, he didn’t want to be near any screens in case the broadcast came back.

Tony stood and ruffled Kalen’s unruly hair. “Whatever you want, Captain. I’ll be downstairs if you need me. And I’m getting you a barbers appointment asap.”

“No! I like my hair!” Kalen squealed.

“That’s not hair, kid, it’s a mop. I wouldn’t be surprised if it grows a life of its own soon.” Tony sang as he descended the stairs.

Kalen rolled his eyes before skipping up to his room to find his book.

* * *

Kalen hadn’t meant to spend all afternoon tucked away reading in his room, and he certainly hadn’t intended to fall asleep with having any dinner. But he woke up tucked carefully under his duvet, book on the side table with a note on top reading,  _ didn’t want to wake you, I’ve left a meal in the kitchen - The Best Dad in the World. _

Kalen yawned, stretched his arms over his head, and rubbed his eyes as he tried to wake himself up enough to go downstairs and fill the hole in his stomach. Pulling back his duvet, Kalen rolled out of bed and padded out of his room towards the staircase, he didn’t notice that the light in Pepper and Tony’s bedroom was on.

He crept across the living room, about to turn on the kitchen light when there was a scream from behind him. Kalen yelped, turning around and stumbling into the wall behind him as a figure sat upright on the sofa.

“Kal, is that you?”

“Auntie Pepper?” Kalen let out a breath and flicked on the light. “What are you doing down here.”

“Oh, um…” She trailed off as Tony barrelled downstairs, quickly realising there was no danger. “I just fell asleep watching a film,” she finished, sharing a look with Tony who stayed quiet. “Sorry I screamed, I didn’t mean to scare you.”

Kalen shook his head, “It’s okay, I should have turned on the light. I just came down to eat my meal.”

Pepper tilted her head and looked to Tony. “You got my note then,” he smiled, it didn’t reach his eyes. Tony nodded toward the kitchen “It’s impossible to miss.”

Kalen walked in, immediately seeing a pile of chocolates stacked up on a plate. He giggled as he brought the plate over to the sofa, dropping a trail of goodies behind him, and set it down on the coffee table.

“If this is your idea of a well-rounded meal, I’m surprised you still have any teeth left,” Pepper smirked.

Before Tony could defend himself, the phone rang. He quickly crossed the room, answering in a cautious tone. “Hello? Yes, that’s me.” There was a long silence, Tony turned his face away from Kalen and Pepper. “No, that’s not possible. I only spoke to him a couple of hours ago.” He laced his hand in his hair as whoever it was talked. “Of course, we’ll be right there.”

Slowly, Tony turned to face them, his eyes wet with tears. “Happy’s hurt. He’s in surgery now… They don’t know if-” He bit his lip. Kalen sprang up and sprinted into Tony’s arms. Tony held him close, scared he’d break if he let go. Pepper joined the embrace, holding up both of her boys.

“We should get to the hospital.”

* * *

They spent half of the night in a hospital waiting room, hoping for good news, and the other half in a private room once Happy left surgery. He was covered in bandages, including one wrapped across most of his face, and hooked up to machines through various wires and tubes.

In the early morning, there was another TV broadcast from the Mandarin claiming that the attack that injured Happy at the Chinese Theatre was his doing. As new’s broke that Iron Man’s old bodyguard and a personal friend had been involved, Pepper reluctantly left to try and control the media situation, leaving Kalen and Tony alone.

Kalen sat next to Happy’s bed, squeezing his hand and waiting for his godfather to wake up, while a nurse ran her hourly observations. She glanced up at the TV screen, “do you want me to turn this off?”

Kalen didn’t hear her speak.

“No, thanks,” Tony said, starting the nurse who hadn’t realised he was there. Tony stood, his arms folded, and gave her a quick smile. “Sunday nights, PBS, Downton Abbey. That’s his show, he thinks it’s elegant.” Tony nodded, his eyes falling on where Happy lay and tracking across to his distraught son. “One more thing. Make sure everyone wears their badges. Hap’s a stickler for that sort of thing, plus, my guys won’t let anyone in without them.”

As he spoke, Tony moved behind Kalen and rested his hands on his shoulders. “We should head home. Get some proper sleep, breakfast maybe.”

“No!” Kalen shouted. “I don’t want to leave him alone, someone should be here when he wakes up.”

Tony’s heart melted at Kalen’s optimism. How, even in dark circumstances, he believed that the best would come, Tony wasn’t about to crush him with the reality of the dreadful situation. “How about we just get some food, you’ve not eaten since yesterday lunch. We’ll come back straight after?”

Kalen stayed quiet for a few seconds, giving Happy’s hand a squeeze in the hopes of getting one back. “Okay,” he nodded eventually. “And Cole will be getting lonely.” 

Tony kept one hand on Kalen’s shoulder as they walked through the hospital, stopping just inside the door as they saw the press outside. It looked as though someone was even live reporting right in front of the door. “You ready, buddy? Just keep your head down and keep walking. I’m right behind you.”

Kalen slipped his hand into Tony’s as they stepped out. The second they left the building, cameras flashed and microphones were shoved into their faces. Tony tried to keep them back but they swarmed around, almost making it impossible to keep walking.

They kept pushing forward, ignoring the shouts and questions bombarding them. When they reached their car, Tony slung his arm over Kalen’s shoulder and held him close as he unlocked and opened the door. “You okay?” He asked, shielding Kalen from the cameras as he climbed in. 

Kalen mumbled a response, Tony hardly heard it as a reporter yelled over the top. “Hey! Mr Stark, when is somebody gonna kill this guy?” He waved a phone camera in Tony’s face, hoping for a reaction.

Tony shut the door and turned to the reporter, his face twisted in anger. “Is that what you want? Here’s a little holiday greeting I’ve wanted to send to the Mandarin, I just didn’t know how to phrase it until now. My name is Tony Stark and I’m not afraid of you. I know you’re a coward. So I’ve decided that you just died, pal.” He pulled off his glasses. “There’s no politics here, just good old fashioned revenge. Just you and me. You made it personal, I’m coming to get the body.” He snatched the reporter’s phone and flung it at the wall, shattering it to pieces. “Bill me,” he said before sliding into the car and driving away as quickly as he could.

After a tense silence, Tony spoke, his voice quiet. “I shouldn’t have done that. I shouldn’t aggravate him.”

“No,” Kalen replied. “He hurt Happy! We have to do something-”

“Not we.” Tony had that unmoveable firmness in his voice. “This is for me to fix. I can’t have you get mixed up again, I  _ can’t _ . You’re just a kid.”

Kalen ground his jaw, he was beginning to hate that phrase. But worst of all was that he knew it was true, and he knew every time he got caught up in danger hurt Tony. Still, he couldn’t sit by and watch innocent people get punished, he never had. And he was never going to lose someone again, not when he could stop it happening.

They didn’t speak for the rest of the journey. As Tony pulled up the mansion’s drive, Kalen looked up at the huge stuffed bunny outside the door. “What’s that?”

“Pep’s Christmas present. It arrived after you went up yesterday, I guess you were already asleep by then. It’s pretty great, huh?”

Kalen narrowed his eyes, “does it even fit through the door?”

“Not yet, some people were supposed to be coming over today to blow out the wall, I think I’ll cancel them.” Tony pulled to a stop and the pair walked inside.

Pepper greeted them both with hugs, sharing a look with Tony. “Kal, sweetie, I left some breakfast on the kitchen counter, fancy helping yourself while I have a word with Tony?”

Kalen nodded. He wasn’t in the mood for eating, not with the sight of Happy floating around his head, but he guessed Pepper and Tony had a lot to talk about. Grabbing a bowl of Pepper’s signature fruit salad, Kalen sat on the sofa, Cole jumping up and rested his head in Kalen’s lap. Kalen scratched his head as he stabbed at the salad, only eating the occasional piece.

He didn’t dare turn on the TV, fearful that another Mandarin broadcast or chatshow would be waiting, but that meant he was stuck with his own thoughts. He couldn’t stop thinking about all of the ways the Mandarin could attack his family like he had countless others already, how he himself could do more to stop him. 

When the doorbell rang, Kalen jumped out of his skin. “Kay!” Tony yelled, charging from down the corridor from his office, Pepper close behind.

Kalen peeked at the glass door. A well-dressed woman stood there, she didn’t seem to have noticed Kalen yet.

Tony ran into the centre of the room, shoulder’s relaxing as he saw Kalen safely on the sofa. He turned towards the door, telling Jarvis to let her in. “You’re not the Mandarin. Are you? Are you?” He asked as she walked in.

She chuckled, “You don’t remember. Why am I not surprised?” She clocked Kalen watching them intently. “Okay, I need to talk to you, someplace not here. It’s urgent.”

Pepper hurried into the room, “Tony, who is this?”

“It’s Maya Hansen. Old botanist pal that I used to know, barely.”

Pepper was trying to keep everything together, for Kalen’s sake, but the stress of Happy in the hospital, Tony threatening a terrorist, and trying to deal with the press was getting to her. “I’m sorry,” she said with a tight smile, “I didn’t know we were expecting guests. And old girlfriends.”

“She’s not-” Tony started.

“Yeah, I’m not his-”

“Well,” Pepper cut in. “You saved yourself a world of pain, trust me. We’re going out of town, Kal pack your-”

“Don’t bother, we’re not leaving. Pep, this is his home.”

“You should have thought about that before threatening the Mandarin,” Pepper hissed.

Kalen turned away as all three bickered back and forth, looking out the window and watching the sea stretching out. Focusing on the waves, just as Bruce had taught him. Something on the horizon caught his eye, growing closer by the second. “Dad?”

“One second, Kay,” he said calmly, before wildly turning back to Pepper. “I can’t protect us out there!”

Kalen glanced back at the thing, he still couldn’t make it out, but a sickening feeling crept up his spine. He jumped up from the sofa, starting Cole who darted towards the front door. “Dad!”

This time, his yell caught their full attention, Tony’s eyes widened in fear. He charged towards Kalen, desperate to reach him before the missile hit. Too late. The room exploded, everyone inside sent flying back.

Kalen hit the wall and fell to the ground, his head pounding as adrenaline rushed through his body. He stumbled to his feet, shaky on the unsteady floor. Tony was shouting his name and ordering Pepper to get Maya out when more missiles hit the house and send Tony crashing back into the sofa. 

“Dad!” Kalen shouted. Tony snapped his head in his direction, spotting him and running to his side.

“Come on, buddy. Like I said, we’re leaving.” They only made it a couple of steps before the floor split in half, a gaping hole too big for them to jump blocking their escape. Pepper turned back, eyes fearful. “Get Maya, we’re gonna find another way around,” Tony instructed, already looking for alternative routes through the decimation.

The barrage of missiles didn’t stop, Shaking the ground below their feet and making walking almost impossible. The house pitched, Tony and Kalen tumbled towards the sea. Tony caught himself on a beam, his legs smashing through the glass window, and threw out his other hand to grab Kalen’s shirt and pull him close. “Go, I’m right behind you!” He yelled, pushing Kalen up the incline before them.

_ “Sir, Mrs Potts is clear of the structure.” _

Machine gun fired filled their ears, pockmarking the floor as Kalen scrambled to safety. “Stay low,” Tony ordered.

Pieces of the Mark 42 flew over Kalen’s head, latching themselves around Tony who used his own body to shield Kalen from the hail of bullets headed their way. “Jarvis where’s my flight power?”

_ “I’m working on it, sir. I must warn you this suit is not combat ready.” _

“You think I don’t know that?” Tony used his repulsors to fire the piano at one of the attacking helicopters, knocking it from the sky. “That’s one. Kay, where are you?”

“Over here!” Kalen clutched onto the edge of the crack in the floor, unable to make it any further.

“I’ve got you! Just stay there!” Tony pulled on of the mini rockets from his suit’s arm, flinging towards a second helicopter and exploding it with a repulsor blast. “That’s two. Oh…”

The helicopter spiralled towards the house, colliding with enough force to send Kalen falling through the crack into the lab below. The house titled further, making standing impossible. Kalen slid down, landing on what remained of a concrete pillar. Dust, fire, and smoke filled the air. Kalen could barely see his hand in front of his face as explosions sounded all around.

“I’ve got you!” Tony yelled, skidding down to catch hold of the same beam as Kalen, one gauntleted hand on the pillar, one clutching Kalen as if his life depended on it. Which it did. “I’ve got you.”

Suddenly, they were in broad daylight. The wall and ceiling above collapsing into the ocean and leaving them exposed. More of the structure failed as the missiles didn’t stop coming, the sea rushed up to greet them, Kalen’s screams lost to the crashes from below. 

Tony knew what he had to do to save Kalen. It was the one thing he hated most.

He had to let go.

There was no time to explain to Kalen that leaving him to fend for himself was the only option. If he held on, Kalen would be dragged to the bottom of the ocean without the suit for protection, at least this way he had a chance.

Kalen just had the time to take a breath before the sea enveloped him. Utter terror struck his heart as he realised Tony wasn’t there. He was alone in a strange, underwater world with his childhood crashing down around him. Figuratively and literally. He didn’t know which way was up. He couldn’t breathe. He was going to die.

No. He  _ did _ know which way was up, he just had to think. The debris was falling, so swim the other way. It was harder than it sounded, the churning water impossible to see through, more than once, he swam into concrete or wreckage of a car. But he didn’t give up.

Eventually, after his lungs were screaming for air, the sea began to lighten. Kalen burst through the surface, spluttering and coughing as he frantically gulped as much air as he could. More chunks of the house or rock fell, sending waves to swallow Kalen under again, but the worst seemed the be over.

Kalen thrashed around, still fighting for enough air, in search of Tony. There was no sign, be must be somewhere below. Without a second thought, Kalen dived down, searching through the darkness for the glow of the arc reactor.

Again and again, he dived, each time surfacing for barely enough time to take a breath. He could find him. Exhaustion hit him like a tonne of bricks, threatening to pull him under forever. 

He clutched onto a floating floorboard. The only thing he had left was hope.


	2. Get Back on Your Feet

When Kalen heard a helicopter coming back, he didn't look up. When it lowered as close to the churning sea as it could, Kalen didn't have the strength to move. And when arms wrapped under his shoulders and pulled him on board, he couldn't fight back. No matter how much he wanted to.

The floorboard he'd been clinging to had long since sunk as it soaked up more and more water, leaving Kalen to fend for himself amongst the waves that threatened to drag him down with it. The numbness, which started in his hands and feet, spread across his limbs and made resisting near impossible. Still, he weakly tried to shove off a pair of hands that wrestled him from his sodden jumper.

"Come on, Kal. Open your eyes. Come on."

The words didn't make sense in his ears, but something about the voice stopped him from protesting as a blanket was tucked around him and hands rubbed his arms.

Kalen forced his eyes open, blinking away the sting of the seawater. It took a few seconds for his vision to clear enough to see, even longer for him to register who was kneeling over him.

"Auntie Nat?" The words came out in a single, slurred syllable between his chattering teeth.

"It's me," she said, still trying to rub some warmth into Kalen's arms. "Everything's going to be okay."

"Wait!" Kalen tried to sit up with a burst of energy that came along with realisation, but Natasha gently pushed him back down. "No! You don't understand, dad's down there! I have to find him, t-to save him."

"We have agents in the water, they'll find him."

"What about Auntie Pepper? Is she- Did she get out in time?"

Natasha offered a smile, though it did nothing to calm Kalen. "She's okay, just worried about you." 

The helicopter landed back where his house had once stood. Natasha finally let Kalen sit up, the blanket still wrapped around him. "Let's get you to her, huh?"

Kalen nodded and shakily got to his feet to dismount the helicopter, heavily leaning on Natasha for support. As soon as his feet touched the floor, Pepper charged towards him and wrapped him in a much-needed warm hug.

"Oh my god," she pressed a kiss to Kalen's forehead. "You're okay, I've got you, sweetie. I'm here."

Kalen burst into tears, as unexpected to himself as it was to Natasha and Pepper. "I'm so sorry, Auntie Pepper. I-I couldn't find him, I tried and tried and tried, but I couldn't-" He wiped away the tears pouring down his face, only for them to be replaced instantly. "I should've done more. Shouldn't have given up. I'm sorry. I'm so so sorry."

"Shh..." Pepper pulled Kalen closer. "It's not your fault, you hear me? You did nothing wrong."

Kalen sobbed into Pepper's shoulder, unable to stop the flow of tears. All the while, Pepper held him close and whispered calmingly in his ear, Natasha glaring at any reporters and news crews who dared step to close.

A bark swivelled Kalen's head. Before he could react, Cole jumped up between him and Pepper and covered his face with licks. Kalen fell to one knee, scratching Cole's flank and muttering "you're a good boy" repeatedly before burying his face in his neck.

After a few moments, Natasha knelt beside them. "Who's this?" She asked, keeping her voice light.

"Oh, this is our dog. We got him just after New York. His, uh..." Kalen trailed off, suddenly feeling as though he'd massively overstepped the mark having only met Agent Coulson a handful of times. "His name's Cole."

"Cole?" Natasha's eyes widened slightly, she looked down at the dalmatian. Scratched behind his ears. "That's nice. Really nice."

Kalen thought he saw tears in her eyes, but she turned away before he could be sure. Natasha stood and turned to Pepper, who was watching the SHIELD helicopter pilots desperately trying to keep the press at bay. "They followed Tony back from the hospital, led the Mandarin's attack right here."

The next words out of Pepper's mouth were one's Kalen wasn't allowed to repeat.

* * *

As night set in, Kalen and Pepper sat by the edge of the cliff, Cole between them, watching the SHIELD agents in the ocean below. Maya was still around somewhere, though keeping her distance, as was Natasha who kept checking in with them both.

Cole trotted off as Kalen rested his head on Pepper’s arm, she played with his hair while telling him, yet again, that they were safe, that Tony would be okay. 

Kalen wanted to believe her, he really did. But he'd noticed the agents swapped from calling it a 'rescue' to a 'recovery' as the hours passed by.

Kalen lifted his head, narrowed his eyes as he tracked Cole's journey. "Hey, Auntie Pepper. I think Cole found something." He slid off the rubble they rested on and joined Cole, taking the object from his mouth.

With renewed tears in his eyes, Kalen turned back to Pepper and showed her what it was. An Iron Man helmet, the faceplate almost split in two by a crack running up the centre. A faint beeping sounded from inside, a surge of optimism flared in Kalen's chest. He pushed the helmet into Pepper's hands.

"Put it on." His voice was small, young. Hopeful.

Silently, she slipped the helmet over her head, her expression blank. There was a few seconds of nothing, then a sob escaped Pepper's mouth. Kalen shuffled closer, tiptoeing to hear the voice coming from the mask.

_ It's me. I hope you get this. _ " Undeniably Tony's voice, he sounded exhausted even through the recording.  _ "I've got a lot of apologies to make and not a lot of time. So... First off, I'm so sorry I put you both in harm's way. That was selfish and stupid, it won't happen again. Also, it's Christmas time and the rabbit's too big. Done. Sorry." _

Tony paused, took a breath. His voice sounding broken when he spoke again.  _ "And I'm sorry in advance because I can't come home yet. I need to get this guy, you gotta stay safe. That's all I know. Maybe go to the Tower? At the very least, Bruce will be there if not the others. I just stole poncho from a wooden Indian, so everything's good here. I'm sorry." _

The second Pepper removed the helmet, she fell to one knee, not caring about the mud staining her suit, and wrapped her arms around Kalen. "He's alive. He's alive," she whispered.

Kalen nodded, not trusting his voice enough to speak, and rested his head on Pepper's shoulder. This time, he was holding her up as much as she was him.

Natasha ran over, her face the perfect expression of practised calm though her voice was tight when she spoke. "Is everything okay?"

"Yeah," Pepper sniffed, wiped her tears away with the back of her palm, and stood. One hand still held on to Kalen's shoulder, the other clutched the helmet to her chest. "Tony made it out."

"H-" Natasha's voice hitched, she coughed. "He did?"

Pepper nodded, allowing herself a moment for her emotions to sink in before composing herself. She had Kalen to think about. "Yes, he didn't say where he was, but he's alive. Natasha, I need to get Kalen somewhere safe, can you take him to the Tower? And apologise to Bruce for the impromptu babysitting, please."

"Wait." Kalen grabbed the hem of Pepper's sleeve, drawing her attention. "You're not coming?"

Pepper kneeled again, face to face with Kalen. "Not yet, sweetie. I'm going to talk with Maya. I'll follow as soon as I'm done. I promise." She kissed his cheek and straightened up. "Now, go with Auntie Nat. I'll be there before you know it."

"Come on, Kal. I'm sure Uncle Bruce would be more than happy to see his favourite nephew."

"I'm Uncle Bruce's favourite?"

"You're everyone's favourite, you should use that to your advantage more," Natasha smirked. "Let's get you to the Tower."

Kalen waved a quick goodbye to Pepper and hurried after Natasha. It took a lot of convincing, but they eventually managed to coax Cole into the helicopter. Their movement seemed to have reinvigorated the press, who doubled their efforts to get passed the SHIELD agents keeping them at bay.

With one last look back at Pepper, Kalen climbed aboard the helicopter.

* * *

The sun was just rising above the city when they reached New York. Bruce waited from them in the landing bay of the soon-to-be Avengers Tower with two steaming cups of hot chocolate, after handing them over, he led the pair inside where he'd laid out a wide selection of breakfast options. Natasha rolled her eyes, complaining that it was too over the top, but Kalen caught her smiling when Bruce turned away.

Kalen, who hadn't eaten since his half-hearted attempt at Pepper's fruit salad, piled his plate with as much as he could fit - much to Bruce's joy -but didn't tuck in straight away. Instead, he rummaged through one of the kitchen cupboards and poured Cole's food into his bowl. He felt a pang of sadness that he couldn't explain to him what had happened, why people kept disappearing, but that didn't stop him leaning his back against the wall and telling the story between mouthfuls of breakfast.

Bruce was the only person in permanent residence at the Tower - though the other Avengers dropped by often - which led to him becoming the unofficial overseer of the remodel. He knew the ins and outs of the redesign just as well as Pepper and both Starks. Now, though, Kalen wished more of the team were around. 

After showering and changing into clothes that hadn't been dunked in the Pacific Ocean, Kalen went back downstairs and joined Natasha and Bruce around the breakfast bar. He picked at the food with less gusto than before, reality taking over from his previous hunger.

"How are you holding up?" Bruce asked, concern laced into his tone.

"I'm good." 

It was becoming somewhat of a catchphrase for Kalen. Putting on a brave face, a  _ heroic _ face, even the world was crashing down around him. Bruce and Natasha looked at him sceptically.

"Really. Dad's okay, Auntie Pepper's okay, Happy will wake up soon. He  _ will _ . I was hoping for a normal Christmas after Loki and everything but..." Kalen trailed off, shrugging his shoulders and staring intently at a croissant.

“What do you say I go out and buy some Christmas decorations for this place?” Natasha asked. “It’s Christmas Eve, and Bruce hasn’t even got a stocking to hang up.”

“This place is in the middle of a remodel, I’m constantly moving around furniture so the builders can work. Anything I put up would get taken down within the day,” Bruce defended.

Kalen grinned. “Aren’t they off for Christmas?”

“I like how this one thinks.” Natasha squeezed Kalen’s shoulder and smirked across the table at Bruce.

Bruce caved at Kalen’s puppy dog eyes, “Okay,” he laughed with a wave of his hand. “Okay, sure. Knock yourselves out.”

Natasha left as soon as she'd eaten, probably more excited than Kalen was. Bruce packed away the leftovers - there was enough to last the next few days, at least - while Kalen cleared the plates into the dishwasher.

The TV was off-limits, Bruce didn't want Kalen seeing the reports of the attack that covered every station going, especially not the ones claiming Tony had died, let alone risking the chances of another Mandarin broadcast. Kalen didn't mind, though, he had other plans.

He dragged Bruce up to the lab - yet to be refurbished, but still state of the art -and pulled up Jarvis' schematics. Neither were experts in AI, but it was clear something was wrong. During the helicopter ride, Kalen tried to talk to Jarvis through the helmet - which he'd taken from Pepper - but put the lack of reply down to the damage done to it. Then Bruce informed him the AI hadn't worked since he woke up this morning. If Jarvis had stopped when their mansion was destroyed, there would have been a guessable explanation, but the delay was... curious.

They worked for almost two hours, getting to grips with the system and searching for a cause of the breakdown, and stopped only when Natasha sent them pictures asking which decorations they liked better. Soon, they reached the crushing conclusion that there was nothing they could do. Ironically, they needed Tony's help, but they couldn't contact Tony without Jarvis.

One thing that became clear, it seemed like someone was tampering with Jarvis' system but from an inside source.

"Maybe it's Tony?" Bruce suggested.

Kalen shook his head. "Dad would know not to disconnect Jay from the Tower, unless he really had too."

Neither voiced the next thought.  _ Someone had hold of Tony's suit. _

"I'm back!" Natasha sang as she skipped into the lab, one Santa hat in each hand, one already on her head. She threw one to Bruce who, begrudgingly, put it on while Natasha pulled the other over Kalen's eyes. Giggling, he shoved it back up.

"I wouldn't have thought a super spy would be so into Christmas." Bruce mused.

"Hey, we're humans too, you know," Natasha snapped back in mock anger as she led the, upstairs. Kalen slipped off to the pile of bags by the lift door as Bruce stumbled to backtrack. Natasha silenced him and dropped her voice to a whisper. "I like Christmas as much as the next 'super spy', but really it's for Kal,” she admitted. “That kid’s mind is like a machine with no off switch. I thought a distraction could help.”

Bruce nodded solemnly as he watched excitement bloom on Kalen's face. The first positive emotion he was sure Kalen wasn't just putting on. "Let's make it a good distraction, then."

* * *

After spending the rest of the morning decking out the Tower - stockings, tinsel, lights, trees, the whole works - Natasha stepped away to take a call, leaving Bruce and Kalen to put on the final tree topper. Kalen stood up on his tiptoes but eventually had to admit he couldn't reach without standing on the chair Bruce had subtly pulled over.

"And, there!" Kalen beamed down at Bruce as he positioned the star. "I think that's everything." He jumped down from the chair and admired the tree.

"Bruce," Natasha walked back into the room. "Could I have a word?"

He glanced at Kalen, nodded, and hurried after Natasha.

Kalen didn't realise he was holding his breath until his lungs started to hurt. He sucked in a long, deep breath, and crept to the doorway. Bruce and Natasha's voices just audible from outside.

_ "That was an update from SHIELD." _

_ "I'm guessing you've not dragged me out here because Tony's coming home soon." _

There was a pause before Natasha spoke.  _ "Rhodey hasn't reported in from a mission in Pakistan, not responding to communication attempts, either. And the agent assigned to protecting Pepper turned up in hospital. No word on what happened to them." _

_ "It can't be a coincidence..." _

_ "The Mandarin has them all." _ Natasha finished the thought.

_ "Poor kid..." _

_ "I don't know how to tell him. Do we tell him?" _

Kalen opened the door and stepped out into the hall. Natasha was halfway towards him before he could bring himself to speak. "How- How is this happening?"

"I don't know, Kal, but I'm going to fix it."

"They're gone. All of them..." Kalen said numbly.

"I'm going to get them back."

Bruce laid a hand on Natasha's shoulder. "Are you sure that's-"

She shrugged him off, glaring. "I'm going to the Triskelion and getting every available agent on this. Hell, I'll hunt them down myself if I have to."

Bruce watched in shocked silence as she strode away. He quickly turned his attention back to Kalen, the kid who's childhood had just been ripped away piece by piece. "Kal..." What was he supposed to say?

"I'm okay." Kalen took a deep breath, wiped away tears. "I'm okay."

"You don't have to be okay." Bruce knelt. "That's a lot to process."

"I'm supposed to be strong, like dad, but I'm scared. What if they- If they-" Kalen couldn't bring himself to finish.

"You  _ are  _ strong. Just look, you fought  _ aliens _ in New York. Do you think Steve wasn't scared? You think your dad wasn't? 'Cause I sure was, I was terrified. Carrying on despite being scared, that's what makes you strong."

Kalen buried his face into Bruce’s shoulder. It took a second, but Bruce hesitantly returned the hug, not holding too tightly as if he thought would break Kalen. Then Kalen realised, Bruce lived in constant fear of the 'other guy' who threatened to break out and wreak havoc at any given moment. Bruce was scared of his own strength, and that didn't make him weak.

* * *

They spent the afternoon on the sofa watching Star Wars, starting with A New Hope - Kalen's favourite. Bruce was on edge, waiting for the first flicker of static that indicated a Mandarin broadcast and prepared to usher Kalen out of the room, but none came. 

They made it as far as Return of the Jedi - Bruce's favourite - before their marathon turned into a debate over which film was better. Bruce knew it was way past Kalen's bedtime but didn't bother to enforce it. Instead, he just kept talking and watching with him, hoping to keep his mind off the back his world just turned upside down. Besides, sleeping would only bring Christmas Day, and Kalen wasn't ready for Christmas Day without his father.

Inevitably, sleep won out and Kalen dozed on the sofa, looking more peaceful than he had since arriving at the tower. Bruce brought down Kalen's duvet and gently tucked him in, fearful of waking him, and took up a seat on the sofa opposite.

Sometime in the early hours - Bruce wasn't sure exactly when - he heard the unmistakable sound of the lift making its way up. He darted across the room and waited for the door to open. He expected Natasha to walk out, but froze, mouth agape, when he came face to face with a beaten up looking Tony, Pepper and Rhodey flanking him. All three looked exhausted.

Tony met Bruce's eye, he didn't need to speak for his question to be obvious. It took Bruce a second to get over the shock before he answered. "He's on the sofa."

Tony squeezed Bruce's shoulder as ran past and barrelled into the sitting room, his footsteps inadvertently waking Kalen. "Kay!" He scooped Kalen into his arms. “I’m so sorry I let go. I’m so sorry I left you.”

It took a moment for the sleep and shock to wear off, but soon Kalen was laughing and clinging to Tony with all his might. “I can’t believe you’re here!”

“You didn’t think I was going to miss Christmas, did you? Speaking of, I have a couple of presents right here.” He set Kalen down again and pointed him towards the others. 

Kalen charged towards them, one arm pulling each into his embrace. “I was so worried about you.” His voice muffled against Rhodey's side.

“We’re here now, and we’re not going anytime soon,” Tony said, joining in the hug from behind and kissing Pepper on the cheek. 

Kalen saw Bruce standing apart, awkwardly playing with the cuffs of his sleeves. Kalen held out an arm and beckoned him in, “Uncle Bruce, your family too.”

Bruce’s face lit up. Kalen grabbed hold of his hand and pulled him in too. He was surrounded by people who loved him, on Christmas Day, and nothing could possibly feel better. 


	3. A Dangerous Game

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry about the jumpiness of this chapter, just a lot to get through before the good stuff  
> Also, when rereading a moment ago, I realised I forgot to mention where Pepper and Tony were, like, at all? So instead of shoehorning some awkward dialogue to explain, they're off a nice couples holiday somewhere far away  
> Hope you enjoy!

** One Year Later - January 2014 **

“Are you sure you wanna do this, kid? There’s still plenty of time to turn back.”

“One hundred percent! Dad always says I’m a ball of energy in the morning. I’m sure I can keep up with an old man,” Kalen taunted. He walked by Steve’s side towards the Washington Monument, the pair drawing quite a few eyes from early morning joggers.

“Well if you’re sure, but don’t expect me to go easy on you just 'cause you're a kid.”

Kalen skipped along the pavement with a bounce in each step. “Why, you scared you’re gonna lose?”

“Oh, is that how it is? Let’s see what you’ve got.” Steve took off at a run as they turned onto 23rd Street. Kalen grinned as he ran to catch up, settling into a steady pace side by side. “Did your dad call yet?”

“Nah, their plane doesn’t land for a couple hours still. Though Mister Happy’s been checking in every half hour since I left New York. I think he’s secretly upset I didn’t stay with him, but he works on weekends so isn’t around. Plus I see him every day, you’ve not visited the tower for like a month.”

“Sorry about that, kid. SHIELD’s had me out on missions every week.”

“Don’t worry, I get it. I bet it’s so cool going out and saving lives and stuff. Do you like it?”

“Are you asking me for career advice? I don’t think Tony would appreciate me putting you on to SHIELD.”

“I won’t tell him it was you,” Kalen grinned. “Besides, dad would never let me, he’d rather take all of SHIELD down then have me join. Director Fury wanted his advice on a project, and he wouldn't even let me help. But I read the blueprints after he'd gone to bed anyway."

Steve dropped his chin to his chest and chuckled, almost in awe. “You always talk this much while running?”

“Ball of energy, remember? See if you can keep up!” Kalen picked up the pace. Steve easily matched him, though pretended it was an effort. 

They ran alongside the front of the Lincoln Memorial, slowly gaining on another jogger wearing a plain, grey jumper. “On your left,” Steve called, warning him as they passed. “You still good, kid? Need a break yet?”

“Why, you getting sleepy? It’s not uncommon for older guys to get tired quickly,” Kalen smirked.

“You know what, kid.” Steve ran ahead, pushing Kalen harder as they turned alongside the reflecting pool. Kalen was beginning to feel the strain but was determined not to let Steve win, though his lack of comeback was probably telling.

They completed another lap of the pool, Kalen panting while Steve hadn’t even broken a sweat. “Let’s take a break up there,” Steve said, pointing to a cluster of trees on a grass verge up ahead.

“Sure, but no holding back.” Kalen charged ahead. Steve put on a show of struggling to catch up, but in reality, passed with ease leaving Kalen to play catch up. 

They closed in on the same jogger as before, he heard them coming and glanced over his shoulder. “Don’t say it. Don’t you say it!” He picked up his pace in an attempt to outrun Steve, but it was an impossible task. 

“On your left.” Steve sailed past, only stopping once he’d reached the trees.

“Oh, no. Not you too!” The jogger shouted as Kalen found a last burst of energy and pulled level with him. Kalen made it to the trees before collapsing to the ground, his arms spread out wide as his chest heaved to catch his breath. The jogger fell against the base of a tree beside him.

“You two need a medic?” Steve asked, a grin on his face.

“I need a new set of lungs,” the jogger joked. “You should take another lap while I get my breath. Did you just take it? I assume you just took it.”

“Don’t boost his ego,” Kalen panted, “I got enough big ego-ed superheroes in my life.”

Steve pointed to the logo on the front of the jogger’s jumper, “What unit you with?”

“58th Pararescue. But now I’m working down at the VA. I’m Sam Wilson.”

“Steve Rogers,” Steve said, offering Sam a hand to help him to his feet. “This is Kal.”

“I kinda put that together. It must have freaked you out, coming home after the whole defrosting thing.”

“It takes some getting used to.” Steve helped Kalen to his feet, too, “you put up a good fight, kid. We should do this again tomorrow.”

“I'm gonna need to frozen in ice for seventy years before I can even think about running again.”

Steve shook his head, but the corners of his mouth turned upwards.

“You must miss the good old days, huh?” Sam asked.

“Well, things aren’t so bad. Food’s a lot better, we used to boil everything. No polio is good. Internet, so helpful. Been reading that a lot trying to catch up, Kal’s been updating me on important films, though I think his meaning of important is very different to others.”

“Hey, Shrek is essential viewing."

“Sure it is, kid," Sam scoffed. "Marvin Gaye, 1972, Trouble Man soundtrack. Everything you missed jammed into one album.”

“I’ll add it to the list.” Steve nodded and pulled out his notebook to scribble down Sam’s suggestion. “We should get going, busy day planned ahead. Thanks for the run, if that’s what you call running.”

“Oh, that’s how it is?” Sam laughed, shaking Steve’s hand. “Any time you wanna stop by the VA, make me look awesome in front of the girl on the front desk, just let me know.”

“I’ll keep it in mind.” Steve gave Sam a smile before turning to leave.

“Wait,” Kalen said, drawing back Steve’s attention, he nodded towards a car coming towards them and watched as it rolled to a stop at the curb.

The window rolled down to reveal Natasha inside. “Hey, Kal, do you know where the Smithsonian is? I’m here to pick up a fossil.”

Kalen giggled as he skipped over. Steve followed close behind. “Does Fury have another mission? I’m supposed to be looking after the kid.”

“Yes, but we leave after dark and you’ll be back before morning. It’s not ideal, but we need you. I’ll fill you in back at your apartment.”

“I think I can handle myself for one night, Uncle Steve.”

“It's not you I'm worried about.” Steve opened the passenger door and stepped in, muttering to himself. "Tony's going to kill me if he finds out."

“It was nice to meet you, Mister Wilson!” Kalen waved as he climbed into the back.

“You too, kid,” Sam crouched so he was level with the window and met Natasha’s eye. “How you doing?”

Kalen rolled his eyes. He’d known Sam all of two minutes and already he’d picked up on the annoying ‘kid’ nickname, and hit on Natasha. Yet, Kalen still found himself liking the man.

Natasha pulled away, weaving in and out of traffic as she drove back to the apartment. Kalen sat in the middle seat and leaned forward, not wanting to be left out of the ‘adults conversation’ happening in the front.

“The ship’s called the Lemurian Star, SHIELD owned, obviously. Some guy named Batroc, ex DGSE and one of Interpol’s most wanted, attacked the ship and took hostages. It’s us and the STRIKE team going in to rescue them.”

Steve nodded along as she filled him in, brow furrowing by the end. “Why aren’t we going on now? Seems like a quick extraction is best for all parties.”

“STRIKE want to wait until nightfall. Lotta men went in with Batroc, we’re going to need to advantage.”

“Still, it seems like a dangerous tactic.”

“That's our orders, Cap.”

* * *

An annoying amount of Kalen’s day was spent in Steve’s spare room, reading a book or playing on his phone. Though eventually, he’d got bored and cracked the door open so he could listen in on Steve and Natasha’s planning session, some guy name Rumlow showed up, too. Kalen recognised him as the leader of the STRIKE team that came to the Tower after the battle in New York.

Finally, Rumlow left, Natasha offered Kalen a rushed goodbye before following to prepare her and Steve’s gear for the mission. Kalen walked out of his room, trying his best to look innocent.

Steve saw right through him. “How much of that did you hear?”

“About half,” Kalen shrugged. “But I promise I won’t tell anyone a single word of what I heard!” He added quickly.

“It’s alright, kid. Relax. Sorry about ruining our day, looks like we’ll have to postpone until tomorrow.”

“A SHIELD mission is way cooler than the Smithsonian.” Kalen tilted his head, pondering. “Actually some of the exhibits sound really cool.”

Steve chuckled, “Tomorrow, I promise.” He checked the time, “I’ve got just enough time to fix up some dinner before ‘Tasha comes back. You sure you’re okay on your own?”

Kalen folded his arms, “Uncle Steve, I built an Iron Man suit. I think I can manage to go to sleep.”

“You make a good point.”

“All my points are good,” Kalen muttered. 

Steve chose to pretend not to hear as he rummaged through his cupboards. “Still, I’m going to check in with Kate next door, she’s a nurse so she should be good if there’s an emergency.”

Kalen bit back a retort along the lines of  _ ‘After everything I’ve seen I think I can handle an emergency.’ _ Instead, he said, “I can always phone Mister Happy, too.” That would help settle Steve’s reluctance to leave him alone.

“Just make sure you do. Now, get over here and help me find the pasta.”

* * *

When Kalen woke up the next morning, Steve still hadn’t returned. He wasn’t too worried, especially after a quick check of the news revealed no offshore explosions or superheroic bodies washing up on the beach, and decided the mission had probably just run over their expectation. Or maybe their Quinjet was damaged so they had to wait for alternate transport. Or maybe they- okay, perhaps Kalen was a little worried after all.

He phoned Happy, who calmed his nerves a great deal, and decided to find himself some breakfast. Kalen was just washing up his bowl of cereal when a key sounded in the lock and Steve walked in. His shoulders were tense, and he looked as if his mind was miles away.

“What’s wrong?” Kalen asked, taking a step towards the door.

“Nothing,” Steve said too quickly. He sighed as he realised his mistake and waved a hand dismissively. "Fury sent Romanoff and me in on different missions. I went to confront him, and he showed me something…” he trailed off, eyes searching Kalen’s. “Those blueprints of Tony’s you saw, what were they?”

“Repulsor engines, not unlike from our suits, but for something much bigger. Commissioned by Director Fury for ‘Project Insight’, whatever that is.”

“Project Insight is SHIELD taking out threats that haven’t happened,” Steve said, an aggressive edge to his voice.

“That sounds... dangerous.”

“That’s what I thought.”

A long silence stretched between the two of them. “So, um… Did you want some breakfast or something?”

Steve smiled. “Definitely. But I think I’m going to grab a shower first, then we’ll head to the Smithsonian. Have you ever ridden a motorbike before?”

“You have a bike?” Kalen asked, his eyes wide. “Dad always says they’re too dangerous, but like, I don’t see his problem cause aliens can be dangerous. So can old friends, and family members who hold a grudge, and, you know, threatening terrorists.”

“A bike ride is far less dangerous than any of those things,” Steve assured. “Hang tight, I’ll be ready soon.”

* * *

Hang tight, it turns out, was good advice for Kalen's first bike ride. He sat behind Steve and clung tightly as he snaked through the streets, the feeling was strangely familiar to the feeling of flying a suit. Not that Kalen got to do that all too often, only when testing out new ideas with Tony.

They arrived at the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum, Kalen vibrating with excitement as they queued to enter. Steve’s first order of business was to buy a couple of baseball caps from the gift shop, hoping to not draw as much attention as they had merely by turning up at the entrance.

First, they went to the Early Flight exhibit where Kalen, realising Steve had been alive at the time, grilled him on everything they came across. A behaviour that stretched on into every exhibition they visited. However, the role was entirely reversed when they came across the Lunar Exploration Vehicles exhibit where Kalen gleefully explained everything he knew in great detail.

“You know there’s only one exhibit left,” Kalen reminded Steve as he finished up his cafe sandwich.

Steve leaned back in his chair. “Do we have to?”

“Yes! You can’t expect me to come all this way and  _ not  _ visit the Captain America exhibit.” Steve made a show of rolling his eyes, though he couldn’t hide the smile of his face at Kalen’s enthusiasm. “Wait, why is your exhibit in the  _ Air and Space Museum _ ? You quite famously have a... questionable history with planes.”

“‘Questionable history’ is certainly one way to put it. Honestly, I have no idea why it’s here.” Steve looked over Kalen’s shoulder where two banners with his own face on stared back. “Let’s get this over with.”

If Steve thought Kalen had been asking a lot of questions before, he was in for a shock. The number of oddly specific questions Kalen thought up was truly astounding. He lapped up everything from the Howling Commandos, right down to the scientists working alongside Howard and Doctor Erskine.

When they reached a memorial to Bucky Barnes, Steve anticipated a plethora of questions that Kalen might ask, none of which he particularly wanted to answer.

“I’m sorry you lost him,” Kalen said. That was certainly  _ not _ something Steve anticipated. He nodded but remained silent. Kalen noticed how he didn’t read the biography, he barely even glanced at Bucky’s picture. “Was he a good man?”

“One of the best I knew,” Steve answered, his eyes lingered for a moment on a clip of him and Bucky laughing together on a mission.

“I’m sure he’s proud of you.” Kalen wasn’t sure it was the right thing to say, but it’s what he wanted to know most from Jason. Granted, it was a very different situation.

“I’d like to think so.” Steve dropped his chin and chuckled, “In fact, he’s probably looking down and laughing at me struggling to answer questions about my own life.”

“Was he funny?” Kalen asked, moving on to the next display.

“Oh, definitely. But he was serious when it counted. After my mum’s funeral, I just wanted to be alone, but Buck found me. He said he would be with me to the end of the line.” Steve shook his head, his mouth a thin line. "It was nice knowing someone was there."

“I get that. That feeling of knowing that someone is always going to stand by your side.”

“I guess the end of the line just came a lot quicker than we expected.”

Kalen pulled Steve into a one-armed hug. “I’ll stand beside you, always.”

“Thanks, kid.”

* * *

Kalen lightly knocked on the door before entering Peggy’s room. Steve hovered awkwardly in the doorframe as Kalen pulled a chair up to Peggy’s bedside. “Hey, Auntie Peggy! It’s me again.” Since moving to New York, Kalen and Tony had visited her on a fairly regular basis.

“Kalen,” she smiled, “look how big you’ve got!”

“You say that every time.” Kalen slipped his hand into Peggy’s and looked over to Steve. “I brought someone along to visit.”

As Steve stepped further into the room, Peggy’s face lit up with recognition. “Steve?”

Kalen watched the tension drain from Steve’s shoulders, “Hey, Peggy.” He pulled up a chair next to Kalen’s. “Turns out I’m not so easy to get rid of.”

Peggy let out a rasped laugh. “I saw you in New York.” She pointed to a tv in the corner of her room. “I half thought I was dreaming.”

“I’m sorry I didn’t come sooner.” He pointed to the pictures of her children on the bedside table. “You should be proud of yourself, Peggy.”

“Mm. I have lived a life. My only regret is that you didn’t get to live yours.” Peggy tilted her head when Steve didn’t reply, “What is it?”

“For as long as I can remember, I just wanted to do what was right. I guess I’m not quite sure what that is anymore. And I thought I could throw myself back in and follow orders. Serve. It’s just not the same.”

“You’re always so dramatic,” Peggy laughed. Kalen searched Steve’s eyes, he hadn’t realised the mission had left Steve so conflicted. Peggy continued talking. “Look, you saved the world. We rather mucked it up.”

“You didn’t. Knowing that you helped found SHIELD is half the reason I stay.”

“The world has changed, and none of us can go back. All we can do is our best. And sometimes the best that we can do is to start over.” Peggy started coughing uncontrollably, Steve jumped out of his chair to grab a glass of water while Kalen held her hand. 

When Peggy looked back, her eyes lit up with recognition again. “Steve?”

“Yeah?”

“You’re alive? You came back.”

“Well, I couldn’t leave my best girl. Not when she owes me a dance.”

* * *

Steve and Kalen stopped by the VA to catch up with Sam before heading on to Steve’s favourite restaurant. The sun had set by the time they made it back to Steve’s apartment. Kalen climbed off the back and waited as Steve parked it up properly before they headed inside.

“Race you!” Kalen grinned before bolting up the stairs. Steve laughed as he followed him up, reaching the top a second after Kalen. 

“I thought you needed a break from running?” He smirked. 

Kalen shrugged. “Changed my mind.” He turned, almost walking straight into Kate, Steve’s nurse neighbour. “I’m so sorry!” He blurted as she nearly dropped her laundry basket. 

“It’s okay, don’t worry about it.”

Steve nodded to her basket. “Hey, if you want… If you want you're more than welcome to use my machine. Might be cheaper than the one in the basement.”

“Oh yeah? What’s it cost?”

“Uh, a cup of coffee?” 

Kalen bit his lip to keep from squealing in excitement. He and Nat had been trying for almost a year to convince Steve to start dating. 

Kate laughed awkwardly, “Thank you, but I already have a load in downstairs, and you really don’t want my scrubs in your machine. I just finished a rotation in the infectious disease ward, so…”

Kalen took an overexaggerated step back from the basket as if something was going to leap out and bite him. 

“Well,” Steve said, “I’ll keep my distance.”

“Hopefully not too far.” Kate started to leave but quickly turned back. “Oh, and I think you left your stereo on.”

“Oh, right. Thank you.” Steve and Kalen walked to his door as Kate headed downstairs. 

“We definitely didn’t leave it on, did we?”

“No, we didn't. Wait out here.” They listened at the door as one of Steve’s 1940s records played from inside. He unlocked the door as quietly as possible and snuck inside. 

Kalen ignored his orders and followed close behind. The only light in the apartment came in through the windows, everything seemed untouched, so not a chance burglar. 

Steve stooped to pick up his shield as they moved down the corridor towards the sitting room. But relaxed against the wall when he turned the corner, Kalen furrowed his brow and peeked around the edge, spotting Fury sitting in the darkness.

“I don’t remember giving you a key,” Steve said. 

“He doesn’t need one. Believe it or not this is the second time we’ve met this way.”

“I thought I told you to wait outside?” Steve raised an eyebrow, Kalen shrugged in reply. 

“My wife kicked me out,” Fury cut in. 

“I didn’t know you were married.”

“A lot of things you don’t know about me.”

Steve walked further into the room. “I know, Nick, that’s the problem.” He turned on a light, only for Fury to turn it off and type a message on his phone. 

_ Ears everywhere _ . 

“I’m sorry to have to do this, but I had no place else to crash.” 

_ Shield compromised.  _

“Who else knows about your wife?” Steve asked, his eyebrows creased in concern as he read the message. 

“Just my friends.”

_ You and me.  _

“Is that what we are?”

“That’s up to you.” Fury stood and stepped closer. 

A deafening bang. Followed by two more. Kalen ducked instinctively as chunks of plaster broke from the wall. Fury yelled out in pain, Steve already next to him and dragging him away from the window. “Kal, cover!” He shouted. 

Fury grabbed Steve’s arm, revealing a USB. “Don’t trust anyone,” he panted through ragged breaths. 

The door flew open, starting Kalen. “Captain Rogers?”

_ Kate? _

Steve saw her too. “Captain Rogers, I’m Agent 13 of SHIELD Special Service. I’m assigned to protect you.”

“On whose orders?” Steve demanded. 

Her eyes fell on the now unconscious Fury. “His.” She knelt by his side and quickly tried to find a pulse before pulling a walkie talkie from her pocket. “Foxtrot is down, he’s unresponsive. I need EMTs.”

_ “Do we have a twenty on the shooter?” _

Steve moved so he could see out the window. “Tell them I’m in pursuit. And Kal, I mean it, stay here.” He charged towards the window, grabbing his shield on the way and using it to break the glass as he leapt through. 

Kalen turned back to Fury. “Is he going to be okay? What can I do?”

Agent 13 shook her head. “There’s not much we can do until he EMTs arrive. Just try to stem the bleeding.” She leaned on a cloth rag covering his bullet wound. “I’m Sharon, sorry about the secret identity.”

“It’s okay. Not actually the first time with has happened, either.”

Paramedics arrived within a few minutes and whisked Fury away to the hospital, leaving Kalen to wait for Steve’s return. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter Friday, really kicks off the Winter Soldier!  
> Thanks for reading, feel free to shout at me in the comments or on Tumblr at thedumbestavenger, I'm still figuring out what to do over there so come watch me struggle. Thanks again!
> 
> (P.S. I definitely didn't just attempt to post this chapter without actually pasting in story...)


	4. We Move Undercover

Kalen paced the length of the tiny room he found himself in at the hospital, unable couldn’t bring himself to watch the surgery happening the other side of the window. Steve couldn’t bring himself to look away. The door flung open as Natasha burst in and rushed to Steve’s side.

“Is he gonna make it?” She asked, her voice flat.

“I don’t know,” Steve replied.

“Tell me about the shooter.”

“He’s fast. Strong. Had a metal arm.”

“Ballistics?”

Maria Hill stepped forward to answer. “Three slugs, no rifling. Completely untraceable.”

“Soviet-made?”

Raised voices from the doctors punctured the glass.  _ “He’s in V-tach.” _

_ “Crash cart coming in.” _

_ “BP’s dropping. Defibrillator!” _

Kalen stopped pacing and finally turned to the window, swallowing as he watched the doctors and nurses scramble to save Fury’s life.

_ “Charge to one hundred. Three, two, one. Clear.” _

_ “No pulse.” _

_ “Okay, two hundred.” _

“Don’t do this to me, Nick,” Natasha mumbled under her breath. “Don’t do this.” They watched on in silence as the doctors stopped, stepped back from the table.

_ “Time of death, 1:03 a.m.” _

Steve strode from the room, Hill followed close behind. Kalen walked up to the window and pulled Natasha into his side with one arm. She looped an arm around his shoulders and leaned her head against Kalen’s. He didn't mention the tears that slipped down her face.

An hour later, Steve and Kalen hung back to give Natasha a private moment with Fury’s body. Kalen tilted his head back against the wall, trying to fend off tears. He wasn’t what you’d call close to Nick, but the man had helped save both Tony’s and his own life, as well as brought together his Extended-Super-Family. The death of anyone would never sit well with Kalen, especially one of a good man.

Maria walked over to join them, speaking in a low voice. “I need to take him.”

Steve met Hill’s eyes and nodded before crossing the room. “Natasha…”

She gave a curt nod, rested a hand on Fury’s head, and walked from the room. Kalen ran after her. The corridor was bustling with SHIELD agents, some in suits, some fully uniformed. “Auntie Nat!” He called.

She turned around, wiping her eyes on the back of her hand. “I’m okay. I just-” She stopped, eyes narrowing as Steve rounded the corner. “Why was Fury in your apartment?” She demanded, stabbing a finger into his chest as he approached.

Steve sighed, “I don’t know.” He looked to Kalen, silently asking him to agree. Right now, he didn’t know who to trust. Kalen was the only one who knew the truth.

Thankfully, Kalen was spared from having to lie to Natasha when Rumlow called down the corridor. “Cap, they want you back at SHIELD.”

“Yeah, give me a second,” Steve nodded.

“They want you now.”

Steve paused for a beat, dropping his voice lower. “Okay.” Rumlow backed off as Steve turned back to Natasha.

“You’re a terrible liar,” she spat. “Kal, I’m taking you back to New York.”

“Kid,” Steve sighed.

It went against every fibre of Kalen’s being not to trust Natasha. He wanted to think that he’d  _ know  _ if she was the one, or one of the people, who compromised SHIELD, but Fury’s last words echoed through his skull.  _ Don’t trust anyone. _ He had to figure this out, and Steve was the only person who could help.

“I’m staying with Uncle Steve.” Kalen’s voice came out quiet, childish. Natasha tried to hide the hurt in her face, but it was written plain as day. She turned on her heel and left without another word, Kalen could only watch her go.

“You heard Rumlow, we have to go. I’m not leaving you here with all these agents around.” Steve squeezed Kalen's shoulder. "I'm going to put a stop to this."

Kalen dropped everything else from his mind, focusing only on the task at hand. “What about the…”  _ The USB that contains whatever information was so important that Fury died for it. _

“Safe. Come on.” Steve led Kalen over to Rumlow, who was about to protest Kalen’s presence but was silenced with a single glare from Steve. The STRIKE Team escorted them from the building, though it felt less like an escort and more like being marched to the principal’s office.

* * *

When they arrived at the Triskelion, SHIELD’s headquarters, Rumlow insisted that Kalen waited in the grand entrance foyer. Steve gave him a nod, “I’ll be back soon, kid.”

Kalen sat on a bench to the side of the foyer, watching people's faces as news about Fury spread, trying to gauge their reactions and form lists in his head.  _ Suspicious, Unsure, Safe. _ Everyone ended up on Suspicious.

The more he watched, the more paranoid he became. Questioning everyone's motive for every action.  _ Why did she look over her shoulder? What are they whispering about? Who is he waiting for? _ Endless questions flowed through his head, each one going unanswered, each one adding to the fear clawing up his spine. 

That’s when he saw the STRIKE Team.

They walked at a pace slightly too fast for an average situation, but not quick enough to look in a hurry. They spread far across the room and tried to remain inconspicuous, but from Kalen’s bench, he could see them all. He watched as they made their way towards the stairwell, most of the disappearing through the door while two stayed behind. One of them glanced Kalen's direction.

He had to get out. He had to get out without being seen doing so. But STRIKE were good at their job. If Kalen weren’t already paranoid, two agents having a friendly chat wouldn’t have concerned him, but every glance his way set warning alarms off inside his head.

Kalen needed to test them, to find out if it was him they were after. As casually as possible, he stood and took a step forward to glance down the corridor after Steve, as if simply waiting for his return, before sighing and sitting back down again. He pulled his phone from his pocket and held it up slightly so he could watch the agents. The furthest one had his hand hovering over his gun holster - it hadn’t been before - while the closer of the two had given up his pretence of talking and stood on his toes, ready to run at any second.

They were definitely after him, no doubt about it. And if such a simple movement had them so on edge, Kalen hated to think what making a break for it would entail. Looking at the phone in his hand, Kalen also realised that SHIELD would have no struggles to track him if he kept it, even with Stark Industries firewalls in place.

By some miracle, someone chose that moment to open the stairwell door and startle the already on edge agents. They spun around, Kalen didn’t wait to see what happened next as he dashed behind a large indoor planter, tall enough that he didn’t have to crouch to be hidden.

Acting as normally as he could muster, Kalen walked to the corner of the planter and quickly scanned the room. It was just open space. His heart plummeted. There were only two options: stay, get found, and get thrown in some sort of SHIELD prison or whatever they planned to do, or he could run, get seen, likely even shot at, and thrown in some sort of SHIELD prison.

He might as well try.

Just as he was to make a break for it, Kalen noticed a shadow in the middle of the floor a little way ahead of him. It was growing bigger by the second. Kalen looked up, eyes widening as he recognised the shape falling towards him. He dashed forward as Steve crashed through the glass ceiling and reached him just as he hit the ground with a clang, landing on his shield.

Kalen reached down a hand and pulled Steve to his feet, the latter clutching one hand to his side. "Nice of you to drop in."

The room exploded into chaos, there were screams, shouts, running footsteps. Steve glanced around. "We've got to go." He was already pulling Kalen along as he ran.

"It's STRIKE. Or at least they're in on it, they've been watching me. Did they find you, too?"

“And then some,” Steve muttered. “This way.” He turned sharply, Kalen catching sight of a sign pointing them towards the garage as he sprinted after. “Tony is going to be so mad me.”

“I don’t think now’s the time.”

Steve slowed as they entered the garage, casting around for his bike. “Here!” He called to Kalen and the pair climbed on. Steve revved the engine into life, not wasting a second before high tailing it out of the garage at full speed. Kalen clung as tight as he could.

“Uh, that’s bad,” Kalen yelled. Ahead of them, the hangar doors were starting to close.

“Just keep your head down!” Steve positioned the bike to be between two of the teeth and pushed the bike to full. Just before the gap grew too small, they sailed through. 

Kalen hadn’t realised he’d been holding his breath until he let it out. They barrelled along the bridge, Kalen yanked his phone from his pocket and chucked it into the river. A Quinjet flew overhead and hovered in front of them. “That’s worse,” Kalen muttered.

_ “Stand down, Captain Rogers. Stand down!” _

“Kid, when I say so, jump and don’t stop running. Trust me.”

The Quinjet’s minigun fired at them, pockmarking the tarmac as Steve expertly manoeuvring in and out to avoid the hail of bullets. Steve pulled his shield from his back and threw it at the Quinjet's engine. “Now!”

Kalen jumped off the side, landing harder than he’d expected and rolling against the barrier in the middle of the road. He scrambled to his feet and charged away from the Triskelion with all the strength he could find. 

The jet pitched and dropped as Kalen ran underneath, Steve was up there doing god knows what but Kalen just kept on running. He heard a series of small explosions then leapt to the side with a surprised yelp, almost tripping over, as Steve landed on one knee beside him. Behind them, a much larger explosion as the Quinjet went down.

“On your left.”

“Yeah. Got that.”

“Hope you're up for another run. We need that USB.”

* * *

After losing the SHIELD agents chasing them, Steve and Kalen headed back to the hospital and found clothes to change into on the way - some poor high school student had Captain America’s uniform stuffed in his gym bag and would no doubt be getting a visit from STRIKE very soon.

Kalen wore jeans, a cap, and a rather unfortunate T-shirt with an alpaca in the centre and the words ‘Vacation? Alpaca my bag!” While Steve wore sweatpants, a purple hoodie over a white top, and trainers a size or two too big.

Steve led them through the hospital, heading towards the room where Fury’s body had been, but stopped further down the corridor and eyed the contents of a vending machine.

“Is now the best time for food?” Kalen asked. Steve didn’t reply, he just stared at an empty space on the shelf. “Wait, you put it in the snack point?”

“Yes, I put it in the snack p- Snack point?”

“Yeah, alright I forgot the name. It’s like a cashpoint but for snacks, okay?”

“I think it’s a much better name.” Natasha’s voice made them both jump. Steve whirled around and locked eyes with her before pushing her back into a small, empty waiting room, Kalen hurried after them.

“Where is it?” Steve growled.

“Safe.”

“Do better.”

“Why did Fury give it to you?”

“Why would I tell you?”

“Steve, come on. It’s Nat,” Kalen pleaded. “She’s on our side.”

“Your side?” Natasha asked. “What do you mean?”

“Don’t pretend like you don’t know,” Steve snapped.

“I only act like I know everything, Rogers.” 

Steve scoffed and nodded to the SHIELD radio on her belt. “Stop lying.”

“Okay. I know they’re after you both. They think you’re hiding something about Fury’s death.”

Kalen stepped forward. “The only thing we’re hiding is that USB.”

Steve sighed. “Did you know Fury hired the pirates to attack the Lemurian Star?” He searched Natasha for her reaction.

She stammered, speechless, for a moment. “Well, it makes sense. The ship was dirty, Fury needed a way in, so do you.” Natasha waited a beat, her eyes flicking between Kalen and Steve’s. “I know who killed Fury.”

Steve leaned back, “Who?”

“Most of the intelligence community doesn’t believe he exists. The ones that do call him the Winter Soldier. He’s credited with over two dozen assassinations in the last fifty years.”

“So he’s a ghost story,” Steve spat, not believing her.

“Five years ago, I was escorting a nuclear engineer out of Iran. Somebody shot out my tires near Odessa. We lost control, went straight over a cliff, I pulled us out. But the Winter Soldier was there. I was covering my engineer so he shot him straight through me.” Natasha lifted the corner of her top to reveal an old scar on her hip. “Soviet slug. No rifling. Untraceable. Going after him is a dead end. I know, I’ve tried. Like you said, he’s a ghost story.” She finished, pulling the USB from her pocket.

Steve plucked it from her hand. “Well, let’s find out what the ghost wants.”

Natasha nodded once, her eyes falling on Kalen’s T-shirt. She raised an eyebrow. “Don’t even,” he mumbled. “It wasn’t a choice.”

* * *

The Apple Store was Natasha’s idea, a place where they could access a computer to read the USB. She ditched all of her SHIELD gear in the hospital's waiting room and took a hoodie from the lost and found before they headed to the closest shopping centre.

“The first rule of going on the run is don’t run, walk,” She said as they passed countless shoppers, none of whom recognised the trio.

Steve glanced around, “if I run in these shoes, they’re going to fall off.”

“There’s the Apple Store,” Kalen pointed up to the second floor. They found an escalator up and walked inside, heading straight for a laptop.

Natasha set to work. “The drive has a Level Six homing program, so as soon as we boot it up, SHIELD will know exactly where we are.”

Steve was still surveilling the room. “How much time will we have?”

“About nine minutes from…” Natasha plugged in the drive, “now.” She looked through files, Kalen watching over her shoulder. “Fury was right about that ship. Somebody’s trying to hide something. This drive is protected by some sort of AI. It keeps rewriting itself to counter my commands.”

“Can you override it?”

“The person who developed this is slightly smarter than me. Slightly.”

Kalen scanned the screen, nodding to himself. “Jarvis has the same code to prevent attacks on him. After the Mandarin, dad gave me a crash course his operating system, so…”

Natasha stepped aside and allowed Kalen to take over. After a tense minute frantically trying to decrypt the device, Kalen shook his head. “I can’t get into the file, not quick enough at least, but I can run a tracer and find out where it came from.”

“Can I help you guys with anything?” An employee sidled up to them, smiling. Kalen subtly titled the screen away from him as Natasha and Steve handled the situation.

“Oh, no. Me and my fiance were looking for some honeymoon destinations,” Natasha beamed, wrapping her arms around Steve.

“Right,” Steve added. “We’re getting married.” 

Kalen rolled his eyes.

“Congratulations. Where are you guys thinking about?”

Steve glanced over where Kalen’s tracer was narrowing in on a map. “Uh, the kid’s thinking New Jersey.”

“Yup,” Kalen smiled, “Albert Einstein’s House and all, very exciting place.”

“Oh.” The employee seemed at a loss for words. He stared at Steve’s face for a long moment, Kalen bit his lip, fearing they’d been busted already. “I have the  _ exact _ same glasses!” He said eventually.

“Wow, you two are practically twins.” 

“Yeah, I wish.” The employee gestured to Steve. “Specimen. Uh, if you guys need anything, I’ve been Aaron.” Aaron backed off, leaving the three of them to crowd around the screen as Kalen worked to find a more specific location.

Steve checked his watch. “You said nine minutes. Time’s up.”

“Just a few more seconds… Okay, got it!” He waited for the location to come up. “Wheaton, New Jersey.”

Steve narrowed his eyes and leaned closer to the screen. “You know it?” Natasha asked.

“I used to. Let’s go. We have to assume STRIKE are already here, they’ll know you’re with us now, too, Nat.”

Natasha tilted her head to one side and smirked at Kalen. “At least someone’s wearing the right top for a road trip.”

“Would be better if I had any bags to alpaca.” Kalen looked out across the shopping centre floor. “Let’s do this.”


	5. Across the River in Jersey

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's cool how some Hamilton lyrics fit the chapter titles quite so well

As they left the Apple Store, Kalen could practically feel the eyes of the STRIKE team watching them. Thankfully, the team hadn’t changed from their uniforms which made them easy to make out through the crowd. Unfortunately, that meant they still had their weapons too.

“Standard tac team,” Steve said, quickly glancing around. “Two behind, two across, and two coming straight at us.” Kalen followed Steve’s gaze, quickly spotting the agents he meant. “If they make us, I’ll engage, you two hit the south escalator to the metro.”

“Shut up and put your arm around me, Kal pull that hat down. Laugh at something I said,” Natasha ordered.

Steve leaned into Natasha and dropped his head, laughing happily. Kalen adjusted his hat, blocking the agent’s view of his face as they passed. When he looked back, the agents hadn’t given them a second glance. “Personally, I think we look kinda suspicious,” Kalen whispered. “I mean, what are we playing here? Loved up couple and their son? I look nothing like either of you even if the years added up. It’s more like you kidnapped me and are trying to hide it.”

“Technically, I think we have,” Steve said. “I’m pretty sure going on the run was on Tony’s list of things _not_ to do.”

“Do you think he knows? He must be freaking out.”

“SHIELD wouldn’t have released that information yet,” Natasha said. “They’ll want to try and handle us themselves before involving anyone else. And they’ll have marked Tony as a potential point of communication to us, telling him doesn’t make sense. SHIELD will just monitor his phone for calls from us.”

“I don’t know if that made it better or worse,” Kalen muttered. “What’s the plan?”

“Get to the parking lot, find a car, go to New Jersey,” Steve answered, pointing them onto an escalator heading down.

“You make it sound so easy.”

Natasha turned to face Steve, “Kiss me.”

“What?” Steve's eyes went wide, he hadn’t noticed Rumlow on the adjacent escalator, he was sure to spot them any second.

“Public displays of affection make people very uncomfortable,” Natasha said quickly.

“Yes, they do.”

Natasha pulled Steve close, tiptoeing to reach his mouth as they kissed. Kalen turned away, though whether it was to hide from Rumlow or Steve and Natasha’s kiss he couldn't say. “That’s wrong on so many levels,” He mumbled to himself.

It worked, Rumlow looked right over them with recognising anyone as the escalators carried them apart again. 

“You still uncomfortable?” Natasha asked, moving to the side to walk the rest of the way down.

“It’s not exactly the word I would use.” 

“Well, it’s exactly the word I _would_ use,” Kalen said as he followed behind.

Natasha smirked over her should. “Aw, don’t you like it when mummy and daddy kiss in public?”

“Nat, _please_ ,” Kalen rubbed his hands over his face as if he could erase the memory. “ _Never_ say those words _ever_ again.”

* * *

“Where did Captain America learn how to steal a car?” Natasha asked. Kalen sat in the back, watching a _Welcome to New Jersey_ sign pass the window. Steve and Natasha were in the front, Steve driving while Natasha relaxed with her feet up.

“Nazi Germany,” Steve replied. “And we’re borrowing. Take your feet off the dash.”

Natasha glared at Steve before reluctantly putting her feet down. “All right, I have a question for you, which you do not have to answer. I feel like, if you don’t answer it though, you’re kinda answering-”

“What?” Steve cut in.

Natasha turned her head towards him, grinning. “Was that your first kiss since 1945?”

“That bad, huh?”

“I didn’t say that.”

“Well, it kinda sounds like that’s what you’re saying.”

“Yeah, I agree with Uncle Steve.” Kalen poked his head between the two front seats. “I mean, you were frozen for a lot of it though so-”

“It was not my first kiss since 1945!” Steve spoke over Kalen. “I’m 95, not dead.”

Natasha smiled. “Nobody special, though?”

Steve scoffed. “Believe it or not, it’s kinda hard to find someone with shared life experience.”

“What about Kate from next door?” Kalen asked, “You did ask her out for coffee. Or should I say Sharon from SHIELD.”

“You asked her out? Tell me what happened,” Natasha said excitedly. She looked at Steve, who remained pointedly silent. “Come on, Kal. Spill.”

“Don’t say a word, kid.”

Kalen looked from the back of Steve’s head to Natasha’s grinning face. “He asked if she wanted to go out for a coffee, she politely declined but in a way that was still kinda flirty,” he blurted before Steve could interrupt again.”

“I can’t believe you,” Steve sighed, he didn’t meet Natasha’s eyes as she turned to him.

“Steven Rogers, asking a nice woman out on a date. Who’d of believed.”

“Look at us now, on the run while she hunts us down.”

Kalen leaned back, shrugging. “Some relationships get off to a rocky start.”

“What would you know? You’re not even in high school yet.”

Natasha turned fully around in her seat. “Speaking of… Have you looked into any high schools yet?” Kalen frowned back at her. “What? We’ve still got a long way to go, and I’m running out of conversation starters.”

Kalen rolled his eyes but couldn’t keep a smile from his face. “Yeah, I have actually. There’s this one really cool one, Midtown School of Science and Technology.”

“Science and technology?” Steve repeated. “Sound’s right up your street.”

“It is,” Kalen beamed. “It’s _the_ best science and tech school in the state, and last year one hundred percent of students got into the top universities. They offer almost every AP going, even to freshmen, and the teachers of the best around.”

“I’m sensing a ‘but’ coming on,” Natasha said.

“ _But_ it’s in Queens. Ever since the Mandarin, you know, destroyed our house, dad’s been _so_ overprotective. There’s no way he’d let me go to a school that far out. And I really don’t all of this is going to help.”

“I’ll be your personal bodyguard if that’s what it takes. Midtown sounds perfect for you.”

Kalen couldn’t help but smile. “Thanks Auntie Nat.”

* * *

Steve pulled to a stop as they came across a chain-link fence, it’s gate blocking the road with a faded stop sign in the middle. Natasha got out first looking around before walking to the gate. Kalen and Steve following behind.

“This is it?” Steve asked, eyeing a sign on the fence.

“The file came from these coordinates.” 

“Camp Lehigh,” Kalen read out loud, turning to Steve. “Isn’t this where you…?”

Steve nodded. “This is where I trained.” He stepped closer to the gate and broke the lock with his shield, pushing it open with one hand. The sun cast long shadows behind them as they walked inside, passing bunkhouses and storage sheds.

“Changed much?” Natasha asked as she led them to the exact coordinates.

Steve stopped walking and stared up at a flag pole. “A little.”

“This is a dead-end. Zero heat signatures, zero waves, not even radio. Whoever wrote the file must have used a router to throw people off.”

“That just so happens to be Captain America’s training camp?” Kalen asked. “Seem’s like too big of a coincidence.”

“True,” Natasha nodded, “though this did become one of the fist SHIELD bases after the war. Maybe whoever routed it didn’t know about-” She stopped talking, realising Steve was miles away, not listening to a word. “What is it?”

He started towards a munitions bunker. “Army regulations forbid storing munitions within five hundred yards of the barracks. This building is in the wrong place.”

Kalen jogged to catch up as they crossed the camp. Steve strode right up to the door and smashed his shield against the lock, breaking it clean in two before opening it up. They were immediately greeted by stairs leading down. By now, the sun was almost entirely set and cast only the faintest of glows down.

The lights flickered on, making Kalen jump before he noticed Natasha with one hand on the switch. She smirked at him, he shook his head in return. With adequate light, they could clearly see they were in an office, a SHIELD emblem adorning the far wall.

They spent a few minutes exploring the room, but there was nothing of interest. All the desks had been cleared out, and filing cabinets contained only dust and cobwebs. Steve called the others over having found a door that leads further inside the facility.

“Kal, look.” Natasha nodded to the far wall where a series of pictures hung in a glass cabinet. 

“Grandpa Howard,” Kalen breathed, instinctively walking closer. In the moment, standing in the facility that had most likely kickstarted SHIELD, he’d never felt closer to Howard. The idea of the man Steve and Peggy had known years before Tony was born never seemed more real. 

There were two other picture, one either side of Howard’s. On the right, a picture of Peggy, on the left someone Kalen recognised from the Smithsonian. “That’s Colonel Phillips, right?”

Steve nodded. “My Commanding Officer. Was never exactly my biggest fan, think I won him over when I returned with Bucky and the 107th.”

“I love that story.”

“Maybe Steve can retell it _after_ we finish up here,” Natasha said.

Kalen was about to reply when Steve shushed him. “Wait, do you hear that?”

Everyone was silent, listening out for whatever Steve had heard. Kalen met his eyes, “Sounds like there’s a breeze in here.”

“Find it, could lead to something.”

“Over here.” Natasha stood by an empty bookshelf. She pulled it back with the help of Steve, revealing a short corridor leading to a lift. 

“If you’re already working in a secret office, why do you need to hide the elevator.

It was a long way down. When the lift finally stopped, the doors opened to reveal only darkness. Steve held out a hand, signalling Kalen to stay behind them as he and Natasha cautiously walked in. The lift doors slid closed. A single overhead light flicked on, producing just enough light to see what was up ahead.

A collection of a set of old school computers forming what would have been an impressive set up for its time. Steve and Natasha walked up to the desk, Kalen headed sideways to examine the data storage units filling the rest of the room.

“This can’t be the data point,” Natasha said. “This technology is ancient.”

“No, this is something bigger.” Kalen pointed to one of the units. “These are 9 Track Tapes. Each one can easily hold over a hundred megabytes of data, and I suspect SHIELD would have been able to increase on that.” He glanced around the room, lines of data units stretched into the darkness that surrounded them, then an unknown distance further. “There’s a lot of data in here.”

“Do you know what this is?” Steve asked, looking a lost amongst the technology. Kalen shook his head.

Natasha moved closer to the desk. “There’s a UBS port, do I plug it in?”

“Might as well,” Kalen said with a shrug.

When she did, more lights turned on. Illuminating data units that stretched farther than Kalen could have imagined. They wired into action, tapes spinning as the computer screens booted up. Kalen moved a little closer to the desk.

An electronic voice spoke. _"Initiate system?"_

Natasha typed out ‘yes’ on the keyboard. Kalen bit his lip, a bad feeling brewing. The computer screen kicked into life, showing something that vaguely resembled a face as the voice gained a german accent.

_“Rogers, Steven, born 1918. Romanoff, Natalia Alianova, born 1984. Stark, Kalen, born 2000.”_

“It’s some kind of recording,” Natasha said.

_“I am not a recording, Fraeulein. I may not be the man I was when the Captain took me prisoner in 1945. But I am.”_

Natasha looked to Steve. “You know this thing?”

He nodded. “Arnim Zola was a German scientist who worked for Red Skull. He’s been dead for years.”

_“First correction, I am Swiss. Second, look around you, Captain. I have never been more alive. In 1972 I received a terminal diagnosis. Science could not save my body. My mind, however, that was worth saving, on two hundred thousand feet of data banks. You are standing in my brain.”_

Kalen walked along one of the lines of data banks, in awe of the scale of the operation given the time it was created in. Fragments of the conversation floated across the room to him.

“Hydra died with Red Skull.”

_“Cut off one head, two more shall take its place. The new Hydra grew. A beautiful parasite inside SHIELD.”_

Kalen froze on the spot. Hydra had been inside SHIELD the whole time. Were any of the agent’s he knew part of Hydra? Were Rumlow and STRIKE? Sharon? Coulson, Hill? 

_Clint_?

_“When history did not cooperate, history was changed. Accidents will happen.”_

Was Fury’s death one of these ‘accidents’? What strings had Hydra pulled behind the scenes? If Zola was at the heart of Hydra, maybe the best course of action was to destroy what was left of him. But breaking each tape individually would take hours. Kalen started walking again, now with more purpose, trying to find a way to take Zola down.

He moved further away, less of the conversation reaching his ears.

 _“Your death amounts to the same as your life. A zero sum.”_ Followed by the smash of glass.

“What’s on this drive?” Steve’s voice.

_“Project Insight requires insight.”_

Kalen reached the far corner, a metal shelf jutted out from the wall, cardboard boxes lined the bottom shelves. Kalen knelt and ripped one open, digging through a selection of tools most likely used to maintain the data banks. He turned to open the next.

_“Unfortunately, you will be too dead to hear it.”_

Kalen whirled around as blast doors snapped shut, blocking off the lift. Steve tried to wedge them open with his shield but was too late. Natasha said something he couldn’t hear.

_“I am afraid I have been stalling, Captain.”_

“Kalen!”

“Nat, no!”

A roaring filled Kalen’s ears. He dived behind the shelf as the room exploded around him. A ball of fire burst from the centre of the room and blew outwards, Kalen ducked lower and covered his head as it swept over the shelf. Rubble rained down, deafeningly loud. The wall to his side crumbled and the shelf collided with Kalen’s head. Knocking him out cold.

* * *

When he came to, Kalen’s head pounded. At first, he thought it was debris falling against the metal, but the sound didn’t stop when he covered his ears. He groaned when he tried to move, every muscle in his body screaming out in pain. Wearily, Kalen pressed a hand to the back of his head, it came away bloody. 

There was a small beam of light breaking through the rubble surrounding what remained of the shelf. Though he was scared moving could bring more crashing down, the dust and soot filled air was choking.

Carefully, and disturbing the debris as little as he could, Kalen wormed his way through the hole and dragged himself out into the night. The beam of light turned into a fully-fledged fire. In fact, as he looked around, everywhere was fire and destruction.

“Uncle Steve! Auntie Nat!” He yelled. Or at least, he tried to scream, it came out more like a hoarse whisper.

The sound of engines rumbled in his ears, he ducked behind a large chunk of what used to be wall seconds before three Quinjets flew overhead, beams searching the ground for survivors. 

After a minute of hovering, they moved on, presumably looking for a place to land so STRIKE could come and recover their bodies.

“Steve!” Kalen yelled again, this time it was actually audible. “Nat! Where are you?”

“Kid?”

Kalen’s heart soared. He stumbled in the direction of the sound, ignoring how the world span with every step he took. Two figures came into view, running towards him. Well, four figures, but Kalen was pretty sure he was seeing double. He squinted his eyes to try and clear up the uncertainty.

Steve reached him first, eyes running over his litany of injuries. “You look like you’ve lost a lot of blood. Are you okay?”

“I’m good,” Kalen mumbled as the world pitched to the side, throwing him off balance. He caught himself before he hit the ground, scraping his hands on debris.

“You don’t look good.” Steve held him in a sitting position.

Kalen swayed, closing his eyes to try and clear his head. Just before he slipped back into the darkness, he mumbled, “I’m fine.”


	6. The Villain in Your History

"Come on, kid. That's it."

Kalen woke with a start, lurching forward at a speed that made his head spin.

"Woah, take it easy now." A hand rested on his shoulder and held him steady.

Kalen sat on a sofa in an unfamiliar apartment. His body screamed out in agony at even the slightest movement, every breath sent shooting pains through his chest.

"How you feeling?"

Kalen winced as he turned to the source of the voice, eyes widening in shock. "Mister Wilson? Wh-" His face fell as a sudden thought hit him. "Where's Steve and Nat?"

"They're okay. They're heading to Fort Meade."

"Fort Meade?"

"Turns out I left something there when I left the Air Force."

Kalen stared at him blankly. "I'm so confused right now. What happened? Why am I here?"

Sam furrowed his brow. "Don't you remember? Steve said you were all in some kind of bunker and SHIELD dropped a bomb on you. Or, Hydra did. They drove back here to regroup. And to shower, no offence but you stink right now."

Kalen laughed, then winced as his ribs felt like they might tear themselves apart. "Have you ever tried finding a shower while running from the biggest intelligence agency in the world?"

Sam chuckled. "Can't say I have. But you've only been running for one day."

" _ One day? _ " Kalen lowered himself back against the sofa. "It feels like weeks."

"Are all Starks this dramatic?"

"If you think this is dramatic, you should see some of the things I've seen. So, why are Steve and Nat going to Fort Meade again?"

"I'll explain over breakfast, kid. I made sure they left some for you, if you feel up to walking over."

"I'd run a mile to get some food right about now."

With a lot of help from Sam, Kalen made it to the table where the remains of his breakfast spread sat. Kalen practically inhaled the food, barely chewing as each mouthful renewed his strength.

"Wow, Mister Wilson," he said between forkfuls of fruit salad. "I thought Uncle Happy was a good cook, but this is the best food I've ever eaten. Have you considered becoming a chef? 'Cause I'd eat at your restaurant every day."

Sam laughed. "No, kid, I haven't. And you can call me Sam."

"You can call me Kal."

"Sure thing, kid."

Kalen rolled his eyes but didn't reply as he shovelled more food into his mouth. He watched as Sam picked up a file from the kitchen and opened it up, placing it down on the table. Kalen almost spat out his food as he looked at the photo inside. "What is this?" He pushed away his plate and picked up the file instead, examining a blueprint for what looked like a winged jetpack. "You flew with this? I mean, I knew you were pararescue but this?"

"You don't have to act like it's cool. You've fought aliens alongside a god, I get it."

"No, this  _ is  _ cool. I have so many questions. Like what fuel do you use? Most have too low energy density to be effective. How about the rigidity flexibility ratio?" He scanned through the blueprint. "Oh carbon fibre, that makes so much sense. And they retract too! What about-"

"I'm going to stop you there. You can get your hands on them when Steve and Natasha get back. Until then, you still need to shower."

* * *

Kalen was running a towel through his hair after a long, agonising, shower when there was a knock at the door. He froze, momentarily fearing Hydra had found them until Natasha poked her head around the doorframe and gave him a warm smile. 

"Nice of you to join us again. Enjoy your nap?"

"Not as much as I enjoyed Sam's cooking. Can he join the team after all of this is over just for the food?"

"I'm way ahead of you there." She smirked. "How are you?"

"I'm good. Little sore, but it'll pass soon."

Steve appeared next to her. "Only you would come out of that and say you're 'a little sore'." He turned to Nat. "We have to go, Sitwell's meeting with the Senator ends in half an hour, we have to get in position."

"Agent Sitwell? Wait, is he Hydra?" Kalen asked as he got to his feet.

Steve nodded. "He is, and you can sit back down. No way are you coming in this state."

"No, Uncle Steve. Come on! I'm fine, look." He gestured are himself, standing in a bloodied T-Shirt and leaning heavily on one foot because the other protested carrying his weight. Steve raised an eyebrow. "Okay so maybe I'm not  _ quite _ fine, but what if SHIELD come here? I can't exactly outrun them like this."

"He's right, Steve. And if we have to make a quick getaway, we can't risk the time coming back here."

Steve let out a long sigh. "Fine, but you're staying in the car. It's not up for debate."

* * *

Somewhere a couple of blocks over, Steve, Natasha, and Sam were up on a rooftop interrogating Agent Sitwell while he, Kalen, hid in a car quietly singing  _ Super Friends _ from  _ Holy Musical B@tman.  _ Under Natasha's orders, he lay in the footwell, awkwardly squashed between rows the seats so he couldn't be easily seen from outside. 

As he waited, Kalen started thinking about Tony. By now, Tony would undoubtedly have tried to contact him only to receive no answer back. And he would surely be freaking out. Tony hadn't even wanted to go on the couple's weekend in the first place, more accurately, he hadn't wanted to leave Kalen. But he and Pepper worked together to convince Tony that some time away might help him relax. 

Kalen knew Tony blamed himself for the Mandarin attack and that he'd never forgive himself. He knew because Kalen still hadn't forgiven himself for Loki's attack in New York, all because of that damned arc reactor. 

He wondered if Tony had heard about Fury, if so, did he know he'd been killed in Steve's apartment? Did he know now that Steve, Kalen, and Nat were running from SHIELD?

The door by his head flung open. Kalen yelped and twisted until he was in a relatively upright position, only to be greeted by Natasha's laugh. "You really hid down there?"

"Wh- Yeah, you told me to!"

"I was joking. Look around, we're parked in an alleyway, no one is going to see. And I think it's more suspicious to be on the floor than sitting normally, don't you?"

"Whatever," Kalen mumbled, looking away. 

Natasha nodded to the seat. "Sit, we have a guest."

Kalen scrambled into the seat before the others could see him. Shuffling closer to the door as Natasha shoved Sitwell into the middle and climbed in herself. Sam and Steve sat in the front. 

"Agent Sitwell," Kalen said as Sam pulled away. 

Sitwell side-eyed Kalen, eyes landing on his t-shirt. "Planning a holiday?"

"Planning to murder anyone?" He shot back. 

"Hey,  _ she's _ the one who threw  _ me  _ off the roof."

" _ That _ was your plan?" Kalen asked, leaning forward to look Natasha in the eye. 

"Well, it worked. He spilled everything. Hydra's planning to use Project Insight to kill anyone who's a threat to Hydra, now or in the future."

Kalen focused in on Sitwell, his voice undertoned with a mixture of fear and anger. "Is my dad on that list?"

"You're all on the list," Sitwell's voice lacked any emotion as Sam pulled onto the freeway. He leaned forward in his seat. "Hydra doesn't like leaks-"

"Then why don't you try sticking a cork in it?" Sam snapped. 

Natasha leaned around the seat to talk to Steve. "Insight is launching in sixteen hours. We're cutting it a little bit close here."

"I know," he replied. "We'll use him to bypass the DNA scans and access the Helicarriers directly."

"What? Are you crazy?" Sitwell's eyes were wide with fear. "That is a terrible, terrible idea."

A loud thud drew everyone's vision to the roof of the car. Before Kalen could react, the window next to him shattered inwards and a hand dragged him out, throwing across the lanes of traffic. 

Kalen rolled, coming to an abrupt stop against the safety divider between lanes, a truck hurtling past only seconds later. Only after the semi had passed did Sitwell's wet, sticky scream register in his ears.

He held back a wave of nausea, both from tumbling across the road, and the new blood splatter covering his jeans. Blood that had once belonged to Sitwell. Cars halted around him, some people getting out and running towards him, only to pull out their phones and video as they recognised who he was. 

"Go," Kalen rasped. "Get outta here! Go!"

He looked ahead. The Winter Soldier stood in the centre of the road, dressed in all black apart from his silver, metal arm. A mask covered most of his face. 

A heavily armoured car smashed into the back of Sam's, pushing them further along the road. Kalen sprinted after them, but catching up was impossible. He couldn't see what was going on, but the sounds echoing back filled him with dread. Car horns, metal clashing against metal, screaming, all mixed into one nightmarish sound.

Each step pulsated inside his head as he ran, but he didn't stop until he reached the scene. He passed the wreckage of Sam's car, pausing to check they weren't inside, when he heard gunshots from the street below. Peering over the edge of the barrier, Kalen could make out Steve hiding behind his shield as a barrage of bullets flew his way. He couldn't see the attackers but guessed there must be three or four down there, not to mention the Winter Soldier himself.

Kalen carried on along the road, limping as he reached a stray tire and car door amongst other scraps from the wreckage. He saw Sam up ahead, they locked eyes. Kalen was about to call out when Sam pressed a finger to his lips. Kalen nodded and hung back, watching as Sam crept alongside an abandoned car before sneak attacking a man aiming a gun down to the road below. Kalen was too far away to make out the details, but it ended with the man falling off the freeway.

"Kid!" Sam beckoned him over as he picked up the man's gun and aimed below. He took a shot just as Kalen reached him. "You get hit?"

Kalen shook his head. "Nah. But Sitwell…"

Sam took another shot. Kalen risked a peek over the edge, Steve ran towards a man with a minigun, using his shield as cover. Three other bodies scattered the area. Steve took out minigun man and stooped behind a car. Bullets hit the safety barrier to Kalen's right, he ducked instinctively. Sam shouted down to Steve as he lined up another shot. "Go! I got this!"

Kalen flinched away as Sam fired a round at the unseen bad guy, each shot echoing inside his skull. Sam crouched down beside him, one hand on his shoulder. "You sure you're okay?"

"Mm," he mumbled. "I'm good." 

An explosion from below made them both jump, Kalen sprang up to look over the edge. Natasha was locked around the Winter Soldier's shoulders trying to take him down. He stumbled backwards into a car and threw her off. She threw something at his metal arm, appearing to disable it. Kalen gripped the top of the barrier, ready to vault over.

"Uh uh, kid." Sam firmly held his shoulder. "No way am I letting you get hurt down there. You're what, twelve?"

"Thirteen," Kalen growled but stayed put. Watching as Natasha ran, weaving between cars and trying to evacuate the area. Kalen looked back to the Winter Soldier, his arm was functional again and he'd lined up a shot on Natasha, tracking her as she ran.

"No!" Kalen broke free of Sam's grip and cleared the barrier. Subconsciously making the, admittedly sickening, decision to land on the body of the guy Sam knocked over to soften the impact. He heard the gunshot ring out. If Natasha screamed, he didn't know. Kalen limped towards them, even with a relatively soft landing it was a long fall, and he had yet to recover from the bunker. But he  _ had _ to get to Natasha. He had to make sure she was still alive.

The Winter Soldier leapt onto a car bonnet, aiming his gun across the street. Steve charged him from behind, the Soldier turned just in time for his fist to connect with Steve's shield before kicking him back. 

Kalen ran to where he'd last seen Nat, only risking a quick at Steve and the Winter Soldier's battle. He saw her. Huddled behind a car and clutching her shoulder. Kalen skidded to her side. "Auntie Nat!"

Natasha's eyes were fearful when she spoke. "Kal," she grimaced as he pressed a hand over her bullet wound. "You gotta get out of here. SHIELD will be on their way. Just go!"

Steve's shield wedged deep into the back door of a van, thrown by one of the soldiers, with a rattling clang. Kalen eyed it, weighing his options. Natasha caught his gaze. "No, don't-" Too late, Kalen was already running full speed to the shield. "That's not what I meant," she muttered, throwing her head back as she tried to alleviate the pain.

Kalen wrapped his hands around Steve's shield and he pulled with all his might, trying to dislodge it. His hands slipped off, slick with Natasha's blood. Muttering a word neither Steve nor Tony would approve of, Kalen frantically wiped them on his jeans.  _ Sure, why not add one more person's blood to the mix _ he thought grimly.

With relatively clean hands, he gripped the shield again, painfully aware that Steve and the Winter Soldier were slowly growing closer to his position. And that Happy's boxing lessons were  _ absolutely  _ no match for the Hydra trained assassin. He yanked the shield, it barely shifted. He pulled again and again, slowly inching it free.

There was a yell from behind. Kalen span around to see Steve be thrown back onto a car and tumble over the roof. The Winter Soldier turned his attention to Kalen, stalking towards him as a hunter after its prey. Kalen had seconds to act. He tightened his grip on the shield, focusing all of his strength into one final tug. It swung free, Kalen twirled on the spot and threw it up as the Winter Soldier drove his knife towards Kalen's chest.

He was backed against the van with no escape from the Soldier's barrage of attacks. Kalen needed an escape. He analysed the Soldier's fighting, like Happy had taught him,  _ one blow to the right, three on the left, two right, repeat. _ He waited for the loop,  _ one right, three left _ , the Soldier's right side momentarily unprotected. The first left connected with the shield, Kalen pivoted right to avoid the second and smashed the shield into the Winter Soldier's head. He stumbled back, Kalen was about to run when Steve came from behind, and they locked in battle once again.

"Cap!" Kalen yelled. "Catch." He threw Steve his shield, knowing it would better in his hands.

It seemed Kalen's body had finally given in. No matter how hard he tried, he simply could not bring his legs to take another step, leaving him to stand helplessly as they fought. Steve gained the upper hand, slamming his shield into the Winter Soldier's face before sidestepping behind him and throwing him down the road. The Soldier's mask fell from his face and clattered to the ground. The Soldier rolled when he hit the floor, getting first to one knee then to his feet, facing away. Kalen moved to Steve's side.

The Winter Soldier turned, his face fully visible without the mask. Kalen stumbled back a step, a gasp escaping his lips. Steve straightened up, staring as if his eyes were deceiving him. "Bucky?"

"Who the hell is Bucky?" The Winter Soldier -  _ Bucky _ \- pulled a pistol from his belt and aimed at Steve. Before he could react, Sam swooped down with his exosuit and knocked him to the ground. A grenade landed where he fell seconds later.

Kalen looked over his shoulder, Natasha leaned heavily against a van, a grenade launcher in hand. When he looked back, Bucky was gone. 

Sirens wailed, but not emergency service sirens. "What should we do?" Kalen asked. "Steve?" He got no answer. Steve just stared where Bucky had been. Kalen glanced between Sam and Natasha, but they all knew it was too late. Within seconds, they were surrounded by armoured SHIELD vehicles with agents pouring out.

_ "Drop the shield, Cap!" _

_ "Get on your knees!" _

_ "Hands up!" _

A mess of shouts from the agents. Rumlow had a pistol aimed at Steve as agents circled around them, blocking any means of escape.

Kalen waited for Steve to take action, expecting some sort of fight. But Steve dropped the shield and held up his hands, nodding for Kalen to follow suit.

"Get down! Get on your knees!" Rumlow yelled, he kicked the back of Kalen's knee and knocked him down. Steve fell too, as did Sam. He couldn't see Natasha but assumed she met the same fate.

Someone tugged Kalen's hands behind his back and locked handcuffs around his wrists. Guns were aimed at his head.

"Hey," Steve struggled against his own restraints. "He's a kid, lay off. I dragged him into this, he's innocent." Steve silenced Kalen's protests with a glare that said ' _ I'm trying to save you _ .'

"He's still a fugitive," Rumlow grunted. He looked up, noticing a helicopter from one of the news channels, most likely live reporting. "Put the guns down. Not here. Not here!"

They were pulled to their feet and dragged into the back of a SHIELD van. A Hydra van, more likely. Two fully suited agents watching over them as they drove away.

"It was him," Steve muttered. His eyes trained on the floor. "He looked right at me like he didn't even know me."

"How is that even possible," Sam asked. "It was, like, seventy years ago."

"Zola. Bucky's unit was captured in forty-three. Zola experimented on him. Whatever he did helped Bucky survive the fall. They must have found him and…"

"None of that is your fault, Steve," Natasha said weakly, blood loss starting to take its toll.

"Even when I had nothing, I had Bucky."

Sam glanced at Natasha's steadily bleeding wound and turned to the agents escorting them. "We need to get a doctor here. If we don't put pressure on that wound, she's gonna bleed out here in the truck."

"Like they care," Kalen spat. "That's what they want." Sam looked at him, brow furrowed. "'Not here'. That's what Rumlow said. They're just taking us somewhere secluded, not back to SHIELD."

The agent on the left activated their weapon, some sort of shock stick by the looks of it, silencing Kalen and Sam. They flipped it in their hand and… drove it into the second agent's chest before aiming a knock-out kick to their head.

All four pairs of eyes rested the agent. She took off her helmet. "Ah. That thing was squeezing my brain."

"Agent Hill?" 

Hill gave Sam a long look. "Who's this guy?"

* * *

Hill had used a compact metal cutter to, first, free everyone from their restraints, then slice open a hole in the base of the van. Once they were sure Hydra hadn't noticed their escape, Steve hot-wired a van left at the side of the road and Hill drove them from the city.

Kalen sat in back with Natasha, clutching a wad of cloth over her bullet wound to attempt to stop the bleeding. It was mostly working.

The van jerked to a stop, a couple of seconds the side door slid open, and Sam helped Kalen hold Natasha up as they climbed down. They found themselves on the bank of the Potomac River, to one side the river stretched out in a gentle, calming flow, to the other stood a towering, concrete dam.

Hill, unfortunately, started towards the latter.

"There'd better be something good in there," Sam muttered as he and Kalen supported Natasha between them.

Hill opened a metal bar door and lead them down a dimly lit, grimy tunnel. Footsteps echoed towards them, eventually turning into a shadowed figure, then a man.

"GSW. She's lost at least a pint," Hill called out.

"Maybe two," Sam added.

"Let me take her." The man, presumably a doctor - though why there'd be a doctor living in a dam evaded Kalen - jogged forward to take Kalen's spot next to Natasha. Admittedly doing a much better job supporting her than Kalen's limping could allow.

"She'll want to see him, first," Hill said, still leading the group.

"Uh, who?" Kalen asked, feeling a little useless now he wasn't helping Natasha. "Is this an old SHIELD facility? 'Cause if it is we're not safe here."

Hill looked back over her shoulder. "You're safe here. This facility is top secret, bringing you here doubles the number of people who know about it. As for who, it's better if I show you." That was the only explanation Hill offered.

Kalen dropped back, partly because of the skyrocketing paranoia he'd experienced the last couple of days - that what you get when someone's last words are  _ 'don't trust anyone'. _ Partly every inch of his body was screaming out in pain from multiple beatings in the space of a few hours.

Steve hung back, slipping into step with Kalen and speaking in a quiet voice. "Are you holding up, kid?"

Kalen shoved his hands into his pockets and kept his eyes on the floor as if his legs would stop moving if he looked away. "I'd say I'm good, all things considered."

"Maybe it's time to un-consider," Steve leant down to try and get a look at Kalen's face, "'cause you don't look good. You're covered in blood."

"Honestly it's kinda a cocktail of Sitwell's and Nat's, I'd say only about half is mine. It's fine. I'm fine." 

Precisely on the word 'fine', Kalen's leg gave way beneath him. He would have gone down had Steve not caught hold of his elbow and held him upright. "Woah, kid!"

Sam looked back at Steve's shout, his face creased with worry. Kalen waved a dismissive hand, still half propped up by Steve, which seemed good enough for Sam to turn back, but for the not the lines to leave his face.

"I just tripped on a stone back there," Kalen mumbled.

"Look at me," Steve said, his voice gentle.

Reluctantly, Kalen did. Face littered with cuts and bruises. His bloodshot eyes ringed by deep, black circles and which only helped to highlight how pale his skin was. He offered a sheepish smile at the haunted look that crossed Steve's expression. "That bad, huh?"

"Here," Steve manoeuvred Kalen's arm from his pocket and looped it around his own waist, his fingers light as if scared of breaking him. "Hold on to me. I'll get the doctor to check you over."

Kalen hadn't realised quite how unsteady on his feet he was before Steve's help. He balled his hand into a fist around Steve's jumper, silently grateful for his presence.

As they walked, it slowly became more apparent that they were, in fact, in a facility of some sort. Though nowhere near as high-tech as the likes of the Triskelion or the base in New York. It still looked like the inside of a dam, bare brick walls and a general damp smell lingered in the air, but there was the occasional giveaway here and there - a couple of beds set up behind a curtain rail, laptops and basic monitoring equipment set up around a table.

Hill led them to a cordoned-off section, plastic sheets hanging from the ceiling obscuring whatever was behind. She pushed them aside, everyone crowded around to see through the gap.

Nick Fury, laying in a hospital bed, lifted his head. "About damn time."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Only one chapter left until the end of this part and I gotta say, I'm pretty happy with how it came out. Although, there will be a break before I start posting Age of Ultron cause I've not finished it yet BUT, I'm trying out longer, more in-depth chapters and I really quite like it so far so hopefully it's worth the wait. Not sure how long the wait will be but I'll make it as short as possible.  
> Come shout at me on tumblr at thedumbestavenger if you want, it'll probably be the most likely place for a timeline update :) Thanks for reading!


	7. In Command Where you Belong

Nick Fury lifted his head as they walked in. "About damn time." He lay in a hospital bed, hooked up to machines and monitors, and looking a little worse for wear. But alive.

Kalen was the first to speak, a small smirk lighting his face. "Was that a pun, Director? About  _ dam  _ time?" Fury sighed and rolled his eyes, landing Kalen's T-shirt. Kalen held up his hands, "Yeah I know, I know."

The doctor guided Natasha into a chair to tend her wound while Kalen and the others made their way further inside. Steve hovering protectively by Kalen's side.

Fury gestured at the machinery around him. "Lacerated spinal column, cracked sternum, shattered collarbone, perforated liver, and one hell of a headache."

"Don't forget your collapsed lung," the doctor said, pressing a bandage over Natasha's shoulder.

"Let's not forget that. Otherwise, I'm good."

Kalen laughed at Fury's choice of words, the same phrase he so often used himself.

"They cut you open. Your heart stopped." Natasha snapped. The shock at seeing Fury alive quickly turning to anger.

"Tetrodo-"

"Tetrodotoxin B?" Kalen blurted. "That's what you used, right?" Fury nodded, the corner of his mouth turning up slightly. Kalen turned to the others. "Uncle Bruce developed it to help out in… stressful situations, but it never really worked for him. It slows your heart rate to one beat per minute."

Steve looked over Kalen's head. "Why all the secrecy? Why not just tell us?"

"Any attempt on the Director's life had to look successful," Hill said simply.

"Can't kill you if you're already dead," Fury added. "Besides, I wasn't sure who to trust."

"I think I'm speaking on behalf of everyone here, ouch," Kalen said. "I mean, come on. We're the Avengers."

"You're not an Avenger, kid. The first rule of Tony's list was to correct you if you said that.".

"Steve's not joking," Natasha said. "I've got the same list."

Kalen folded his arms. "Killjoy."

A few minutes later, after both Natasha and Kalen had been checked over by the doctor, they gathered around a table that held what was left of SHIELD's secure files. It consisted of a handful of papers, a laptop, and a single briefcase. Fury looked at a picture of Alexander Pierce, holding it in his arm which wasn't in a sling. "This man declined the Nobel Peace Prize. He said peace wasn't an achievement, it was a responsibility. See it's stuff like this that gives me trust issues."

"We have to stop the launch," Natasha said.

"I don't think the council's accepting my calls anymore." Fury opened the briefcase, inside were three specialised computer chips.

"Once the Helicarriers reach three thousand feet," Hill turned the laptop around as she spoke. "They'll triangulate with Insight satellites, becoming fully weaponised." They watched a simulation run on the screen.

"We need to breach those carriers and replace their targeting blades with our own." Fury explained, pointing to the chips on the briefcase.

"One or two won't cut it. We need to link all three carriers for this to work because if even one of those ships remains operational, a whole lot of people are gonna die."

"We have to assume everyone on board those ships are Hydra. We need to get past them, insert these server blades. And maybe, just maybe, we can salvage what's left-"

"We're not salvaging anything," Steve cut in. "We're not just taking down the carriers, Nick. We're taking down SHIELD."

"SHIELD had nothing to do with this!"

"You gave me this mission. This is how it ends." Steve was bordering on shouting. "SHIELD's been compromised. You said it yourself. Hydra grew right under your nose, and nobody noticed."

"Why do you think we're hiding in this cave? I noticed."

"How many paid the price before you did?"

Fury looked away. "Look, I didn't know about Barnes."

"Even if you had, would you have told me? Or would you have compartmentalised that, too? SHIELD, Hydra, it all goes."

Hill nodded. "He's right, Nick."

Fury looked from Natasha to Kalen, both of whom stayed silent, then to Sam. "Don't look at me," he shrugged, "I do what he does, just slower."

Fury finally looked back to Steve. "Well, looks like you're giving the orders now, Cap."

* * *

Kalen trudged behind the others, the pain medication given to him by the doctor wearing off and giving way to a constant, dull ache throughout his body. It all felt very surreal. They didn't know how many people were on the Insight list, but their lowest estimate was a few million. A few million people were about to lose their lives to a threat which, to them, was barely more than a whispered word from a distant tale. And yet, this ragtag, under-equipped, undermanned, group marched on through the forest on the bank of the Potomac.

The calming sounds of trees rustling and birds singing to each other couldn't be further from the turmoil boiling inside of Kalen. He knew the plan, he  _ hated _ the plan, but it was the only one they had. He jogged to catch up to Steve.

"Aren't you glad I made you go to the Smithsonian now? Would've been fighting Hydra in sweatpants and oversized trainers otherwise."

Steve looked down at his old World War Two uniform, his face unreadable. "It's strange to be wearing this suit again."

"'Cause last time you wore it you 'died'?"

"Thanks for the reminder."

"It's different this time, you didn't have me," Kalen smirked. "I told you I'd stand beside you."

Steve froze in his tracks. "No, Kal, you're not coming in with us. It would be too dangerous even if you had your suit with you."

"Let me guess, that's the second rule on dad's list."

"Third. Sorry kid, but this isn't up for debate. Just wait here until it's all over, I'll come back and get you."

Kalen watched Steve jogged to catch up to Sam and Hill, weighing up whether he should follow or not. He paced up and down, running over the plan in his head.  _ Sneak into the Triskelion, broadcast Hydra's files, get to the Helicarriers, override them with the targeting blades. _ There were too many opportunities for the whole thing to fall apart, for one, they had no idea how many agents in the Triskelion were Hydra and how many remained loyal to SHIELD. Meaning they didn't even know how bad the fight would be.

Without realising, Kalen had gone from pacing to full pelt running after the others. He burst from the treeline out onto the riverbank, across the water, he could just make out the distant shapes of Sam, Steve, and Hill, sneaking along the opposite bank and getting into position. With a realisation that made him feel hollow inside, he saw a fourth figure gradually making its way towards them. The sun glinting off his metal arm.

The Winter Soldier hadn't noticed them, not yet. But it was only a matter of time until they cross paths. Bucky was the only other person outside, every other agent - SHIELD and Hydra alike- presumably inside preparing for the launch of Insight.

Kalen saw only one option.

Breaking into a sprint, he charged to one of the bridges spanning the river and crossed, waving his arms high. "Hey!" He yelled. "Hey! Over here!" 

It worked. The Soldier turned, his eyes narrowed against the sun, and started towards him. More importantly,  _ away from the others. _ Kalen took a couple of tentative steps back, trying to buy more time as he formulated the next step in his plan.

He'd made it about three-quarters of the way across the bridge before his yells caught Bucky's attention, leaving him stranded with no choice but to run. However, to Kalen's confusion, Bucky stopped just before setting foot on the bridge and reached for his holster. Kalen dived to the side and hid behind a support beam, a second later, a bullet hit the ground where he'd been standing.

He took a moment to catch his breath, trying to listen out for movement from the end of the bridge, but the sound of the river drowned everything else out. Sucking in a breath and adjusting his position, Kalen leaned out from his cover. Bucky still hadn't stepped foot on the bridge.  _ It must be against his orders to leave, _ Kalen thought. He jerked back behind the pillar, yelping as a chunk of concrete shattered next to his head.

Kalen's breathing was rapid and shallow, his palms sweaty, as his mind raced. "He can't leave the island," he muttered quietly, trying to calm his thoughts by speaking them aloud. "And you can't run, not without getting shot at. Think, think, think." He gound his palms into his eyes and leant his head back against the pillar as he ran through scenarios in his head. Each one ended with him bleeding out after a shot from the well-trained assassin.

Before he managed to work his way to a better outcome, a rumbling sounded, growing until it was louder than the river itself. "No. Nonono!" Beyond the barrier at the edge of the bridge, three bay doors opened just under the surface of the river. He couldn't see what was underneath from his position, but no points for guessing.

He risked a quick glance at Bucky, but the Soldier had disappeared. He must have been as disturbed by the early launch of the Helicarriers as Kalen. Even worse, Steve and Sam were nowhere to be seen.

Kalen made a dash to the shore. He'd read the blueprints, he knew how the repulsor engines worked. If he could get on board, there was a chance he'd be able to disable them and buy more time for Steve to arrive with the targeting blade.

Whatever was going on inside the Triskelion had begun to spill out, agents running and shouting, but in the commotion, no one noticed Kalen sprinting alongside the Quinjet launch bays. He stuck to the edge, waiting for the Helicarriers to rise high enough to level out with the ground then taking a running leap onto the deck of the closest one.

Looking around, Kalen immediately knew something was wrong. The Helicarrier to his left crawled with Hydra, but this one was deadly silent. Nevertheless, he made his way across to one of the engines. If he could keep the carrier close to the ground then maybe-

Heavy cannon fire to the right. Kalen whirled to find the source, one of the carriers was firing at something in the sky. Some _ one _ .

Sam.

Kalen watched him expertly dodge the cannon fire, relief filling the previous empty feeling. If Sam was here, there was a good chance Steve was too. They might just have a chance yet.

He turned back to the engine. It was nearly identical to the repulsors in his and Tony's suits, just scaled up enough to carry the weight of the Helicarrier. He considered dropping something into the engine core, but even if he could move one of the storage crates on the deck the chances of overheating the engine were too high. They needed all three carriers operational for the plan to work, he'd have to find the control panel and take down the engines manually.

Kalen glanced across the deck again, checking to see if any agents had made themselves visible. One had - the Winter Solider. He was also surveying the scene, but, thankfully, facing the other way. Kalen ducked down behind the closest storage crate, working under the assumption he'd already be dead if the Soldier had seen him.

The roar from the engine was too loud to hear Bucky's footsteps, the sun glared in his eyes so he couldn't even see his shadow if he were to approach. He didn't dare stand up.

_ That explains why there's no one else around,  _ Kalen thought,  _ Bucky's mission was to guard this Helicarrier, that's why he didn't chase me across the bridge. Hydra knew he wouldn't fail. _

A sudden movement to the right caught Kalen's attention, his head whipped around at breakneck speed. Sam dropped Steve onto the deck before landing himself. Kalen waved, trying to catch their attention before it was- Too late. Bucky tackled Steve side on, knocking straight through a safety railing and over the edge of the carrier.

"Steve!" Sam yelled, already engaging his wings as he jumped after him. Bucky grabbed hold of one of the wings, catching Sam off guard, and ripped it from the exosuit. Leaving Sam defenceless as he fell. Kalen had to bite back a rising panic as the Winter Solider stalked back from the edge, heading towards the main control centre.

Kalen closed his eyes.  _ What should I do? WhatshouldIdowhatshouldIdo? _

"Kid?"

Kalen's eyes flew open. "Steve? You're here? I thought you were- I mean- I saw you fall."

Steve offered a hand to pull Kalen to his feet. "I hit the lower deck, climbed back up."

"Sam?"

"Parachute in his suit, he's fine."

Kalen let out a breath, shoulders relaxing. "Did you chip the other two carriers?"

Steve nodded once, a grim determination set across his face. "Just one left."

They started across the deck. "And it's only guarded by possibly the most dedicated assassin I've come across."

"Have you come across many?"

"A couple," Kalen shrugged.

"I thought I told you to stay put." Steve's voice didn't contain anger, but fear, maybe with a little awe mixed in.

"I grew up with my dad and your comics, two people who are  _ never _ going to back down, it's a miracle I waited as long as I did before I followed you." That comment earned a glare from Steve. "I saw Bucky across the bridge, he was going to see you can compromise the whole mission. I had to do something. Things kinda... escalated."

" _ Escalated _ ? Is that a pun?"

Kalen laughed. "It is now."

As they reached the door to the control centre, all camaraderie fell away, replaced by near palpable apprehension.

"I don't suppose you're going to wait out here, are you?"

Kalen shook his head. "Why? You scared a kid like me is going to show up an old man like you."

"One more comment like that and I'll have Tony ground you."

"One more comment like that and he'll have the Secretary of State give me a medal of honour." Kalen met Steve's eyes. "I told you I'd stand beside you, I'm not backing out now."

Steve handed Kalen the chip. "I'll distract Bucky, you just focus on getting that plugged in. No matter what happens, stay safe." He opened the door and stepped inside, heading straight for the weapons centre where the chips needed to be switched out. A set of stairs let down to a metal catwalk, Bucky already waiting at the other end.

Steve stopped halfway across, Kalen by his side. "People are gonna die, Buck. I can't let that happen." Bucky didn't say anything, just stood perfectly still and stared back. "Please don't make me do this."

When Bucky still didn't reply, Steve set his jaw. He launched his shield at Bucky who deflected it with ease only for Steve to catch it again and step in front of Kalen as Bucky reached for his gun. Bullets ricocheted off of the metal with reverberating clangs. Steve closed in, protected behind the shield, until he was close enough to hit Bucky in the chest, knocking him backwards and sending his gun sprawling to the side.

Kalen hung back, waiting for the opportunity to run forward and switch out the blade with he held in an iron tight grip. Watching the fight before him made Kalen realise how defenceless he was, sure he knew how to throw a punch or two from his lessons with Happy, but this was an entirely different level. As it seemed his brushes with death weren't coming to a stop as he'd hoped, maybe it was time to step it up himself.

Now without his gun, Bucky pulled a knife from his belt. Steve fended off a barrage of attacks and managed to land a kick that sent Bucky toppling backwards over the railing.

Kalen took the chance to dash to the console and tapped at the keypad to bring about the targeting system chips. There was a cry as Bucky, having climbed back up, grabbed Steve's ankle and sent him crashing down below. Kalen barely had the time to remove the Hydra chip before Bucky reached him, grasped the back of his shirt, and ripped him away from the console with such force that he smashed straight through the railing and plummeting after Steve. 

The ground rushed up fast. Too fast. The landing knocked all of the air from Kalen's chest, as well as sending Fury's chip clattering across the glass dome of the Helicarrier. Gasping desperately, Kalen tried to locate the chip, but the lack of oxygen was causing his head to spin and make standing impossible. On hands and knees, he groped the floor, arms flailing in a scrambling frenzy.

The faint sounds of Bucky's fist on Steve's shield started to grow clearer, and his vision cleared as Kalen finally got some much-needed air. There. The chip had slid further down the dome, Kalen pushed himself upright and chased after it. A shadow appeared just before he could reach down to pick it up.

Before he could react, Bucky's punch caught the side of his skull, whipping his sideways with a spray of blood and momentarily stunning him. Two more hits came in quick succession followed by a kick to the chest that left Kalen on the floor to watch, helplessly, as Bucky picked up the chip.

Steve charged in from behind, knocking Bucky to the ground and trapping him in a headlock, arms pinned to his sides. "Kid," he grunted, face straining with the exertion of keeping Bucky subdued. "Grab it!"

Kalen stumbled forward, tripping over his own feet and wiping away the blood that poured from his forehead and into his eyes. Half collapsing, he knelt beside Bucky and wrestled the chip from his grasp. "Yes!" He cried as it came free, he looked up at the console way above. "Uh, I'm gonna need a leg up, Cap."

Steve held Bucky a couple of seconds longer, waiting to the Soldier to pass out under his choking grip, before running to the pillar that held up the console. "I'll follow you up." He laced his fingers together and boosted Kalen onto a ledge partway up.

Looking up, Kalen plotted himself a route and began to climb, the chip firmly held in one hand. He could hear Steve just below him, followed by his cry of pain as a deafening shot rang out. "Steve?" Kalen looked down, Steve clutched his leg, Bucky even further below aiming his gun yet again.

"Just keep going!" Steve grunted between gritted teeth, getting to his feet to follow Kalen.

As they climbed, more bullets sailed past and lodged into the underside of the console. Finally, Kalen reached the top, Steve just below, and rolled onto the catwalk. Scrambling to his feet, Kalen ran back to the controls, but just as he was about to swap the chips, pain exploded in his stomach. He fell to the floor as his legs buckled beneath him, sucking in ragged breaths as his brain tried to catch up to what was happening. A patch of red steadily growing from a bullet hole in his top.

"St- Steve," he rasped. "Steve-"

Steve crouched beside him, pressing a hand over the wound with enough pressure to cause Kalen to cry out in pain.

"T-take it." He pressed the chip into Steve's other hand, forcing his fingers to curl over it. "Just g-go."

"Kid, you know what this is going to do-"

"I know. D-do it." Tears welled in Kalen's eyes, his brain still lagging behind everything else. "I-I'm not getting outta here. Tell da-dad I love h-im." Kalen's breaths were coming in shorter, now, talking becoming harder.

"You can tell him yourself-" He cut himself off, Hill's voice could be heard over his comms.

_ "Steve! Twenty seconds until they fire." _

Kalen tried to give Steve a look that showed confidence and bravery but ended up coughing hard enough for blood to trickle down his chin.

Steve didn't have a choice, they both knew it. He straightened up and reached for the control panel. Kalen saw Bucky raising his gun one last time, aiming the perfect shot on Steve. Clawing his way to the edge of the catwalk, he threw himself over, landing on Bucky in a tangle of limbs and a pool of blood.

Bucky fought to free himself, Kalen hardly putting up a fight as he lost his strength as fast as the blood seeped from his wound.

Somewhere the other side of the dome, he saw the Helicarriers aim their guns at each other.  _ Steve did it. _ He just hoped he had enough time to get away. 

The first bombardment rocked the carrier. Shaking everything from the console down the glass as it tilted towards the ground. The second came soon after, then the third. The console was engulfed by flames, and the supports for the catwalk fell, some smashing the glass as they landed.

One of the supported fell towards Kalen, it took all of his strength to roll away, but Bucky wasn't so lucky. He let out a guttural cry as the ting fell on top of him. Kalen couldn't leave him there, Steve had told him Bucky was a good man, he couldn't leave a good man to die without a fighting chance to make his way back.

He stumbled towards Bucky and knelt by his side, trying to lift the support enough for him to escape. It was helpless. They met eyes and, for the first time, Kalen was close enough to see the fear and pain behind them. "Come on," he muttered, renewing his efforts to lift it.

Steve jumped down next to him and slipped his hands under the beam, pulling it up with all his strength. Kalen shuffled closer to help pull Bucky free, though as soon as he was, Bucky pushed him away. Kalen tripped backwards, tumbling to the bottom of the dome as the Helicarrier tore a hole into the Triskelion building on its free fall.

"You know me!" Steve shouted over the noise.

"No I don't!" Bucky roared back.

"You've known me your whole life. Your name is James Buchanan Barnes." Steve cried out as Bucky hit him.

Kalen used the dregs of his strength to claw his way back to the pair. "Steve," he tried to yell, but all he managed was a jagged murmur. "Go while you still can."

"I'm not leaving him." Steve turned to Bucky, taking off his cowl and dropping his shield, it fell through a broken glass plane into the Potomac leagues below. "I'm not going to fight you. You're my friend."

Bucky charged at Steve, tackling him to the ground. "You're my mission." He landed blow after blow on Steve's face. He pulled back for one more but stopped himself.

"Then finish it. Because I'm with you to the end of the line."

Bucky froze, staring down at Steve. Kalen's strength finally gave out, and he fell to his knees, fighting just to keep his eyes open.

With a metallic creek, part of the firey console toppled down and smashed through the glass floor, taking Steve and Bucky down with it. The damage was enough to crack the entire dome and caused the Helicarrier to tilt to such a degree that Kalen slid towards the hole and fell over the edge.

The fall stopped as abruptly as it started. Kalen looked up to see Bucky clinging to one of the metal floor beams, his other hand clutching Kalen's wrist.

Still, more of the Helicarrier collapsed. Something must have landed on the beam because Kalen was jolted from Bucky's grip, both their screams lost amongst the chaos around them.

As the cold of the Potomac engulfed him, Kalen was thrown back to the day Mandarin attacked, and he and Tony were left to the whim of the sea. Except this time, Tony wasn't there, and Kalen knew for sure he was about to die. His half-hearted efforts to kick upwards were thwarted by the constant rain of debris. His lungs screaming for air as he fought his way through.

It was almost ethereal. As if he were suspended in a weightless world where one light touch could move concrete as easily as a breeze blowing paper. A hazy, green and blue paradise where an insignificant kid like himself could affect the world surrounding him.

A hand grabbed the back of his shirt, dragging from this dream-land to the cold, harsh, reality of the surface. Kalen spluttered up a mixture of water and blood as he attempted to refill his lungs. Bucky dragged him onto the shore, Steve clutched in his other hand, and dumped them both on the beach. He glanced between them, and walked away.

* * *

When Kalen came around, the first thing he noticed wasn't the pain or the rhythmic beep of the heart monitor, but the hand squeezing his own. A gentle smile lit his face as he cracked his eyes open. "Dad," he whispered, not wanting to startle the half-asleep man sitting by his bedside.

Tony looked up, his eyes misty with tears, and opened his mouth to speak, but no words seemed to come. Instead, he relaxed back into his chair and smiled at Kalen. Relief threatening to overwhelm him.

"We've got to stop meeting like this," Kalen mumbled.

Tony let out a disbelieving laugh, pausing before he spoke. "You are… so grounded."

Kalen closed his eyes again, but his smile grew. "I probably deserve that."

"I'm talking months here. You're basically never leaving the tower again."

"Hey, that's a bit harsh-"

"You took down the world's biggest intelligence organisation."

Kalen hesitated. "A corrupt one, though."

"You'd best stop before I make it years."

"I love you, dad."

"Nice try, but you're still grounded." Tony paused a beat. "I love you too, Captain."

"Hey, dad?" Tony hummed a response. "I think I need a new phone. I kinda… threw mine in the Potomac." Kalen laughed to himself, "I guess I threw a lot more than just my phone in."

"That's your first priority? Not the fact that you've been at death's door for the best part of the last forty-eight hours?"

Kalen shrugged but winced as the movement pulled on the stitches sealing his gunshot wound. "I got better. Wait, how's Steve?" Kalen tried to sit up. "And Nat and Sam? Are they okay?"

Tony gently eased Kalen back down. "They're all okay. Cap got hit worse, but the Winged Wonder came by a couple hours ago to say he was awake. I think Natasha's outside with Pepper and Happy, they only allow one visitor pere patient up here."

Kalen relaxed back into the bed. "So everything's okay?"

"There is one thing." Tony failed to hide a mischievous smile as he stood and walked across the room. "The doctors gave me a bag of your belongings, not that you had many." He picked up a bag and sat back in the chair, pulling out the bloodied alpaca T-Shirt, still dripping with water and now with a cut running up one side where the doctors had removed it in a hurry.

"Aw, it was actually starting to grow on me."

Tony chuckled, "I bet I can fix it up good as new."

"Yeah," Kalen laughed, "I'd hate to lose my 'Overthrowing Evil Organisations' T-shirt."

"I did bring you this, though." Tony reached over the back of his chair and held the Iron Man hoodie he'd brought Kalen for his ninth birthday. Kalen hadn't even registered it being there before, but reached out a shaky hand and cuddled it close. He narrowed his eyes as Tony diligently watched his every move.

"Wait…" Kalen held the jumper out in front of him. "Did you- Have you put a tracker in this?"

Tony paused, clearly debating lying before he answered. "Yes?"

"Dad, come on!"

"If you mess with it it'll leak permanent dye all over the front. So don't do that. And it can only be tracked by me. Literally, it needs my fingerprint to access the tracker." Tony let out a long breath and fell back in the chair. It seemed that everything was only just catching up to him, Kalen had to admit he was waiting for it to happen to him, too. "When I saw you get arrested by STRIKE… Kay, I thought I'd lost you right then."

Kalen reached out and squeezed Tony's hand. "I'm here, and I'm alive, and I'm not going anywhere. I never am." There was a long pause, Kalen was holding back a laugh by then end. "Are you telling me that everyone saw me get arrested in that?"

Tony nodded solemnly. "'Alpaca my bags' was trending on Twitter. I'll never live down the embarrassment." Tony glanced at the door. "I should go and tell everyone you're okay, I know they're worried."

"Yeah, of course. Go." Tony stood to leave. "Oh! I know it's a strange time and all, but why not. When you get back, could we talk about High Schools?"

Tony's face lit up. "I read about this really good one, sounds perfect for you. Midtown something? I'll tell you all about it when I get back."

Kalen smiled as Tony left and rested his head back, staring up at the ceiling. Maybe things were going to work out just fine after all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading so far! I really quite like this chapter so I hope you do too.  
> Like I said, this it the last chapter for the foreseeable but I'll get back to posting as soon as I can!   
> Feel free to shout at me over on tumblr at thedumbestavenger. I binged the umbrella academy in one day so you can probably expect some marvel/umbrella academy crossovers over there  
> thanks again! :)


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